Legal Systems Overview

What is the penalty for contraventions?

Which category of crime includes the severest penalties?

What distinguishes a felony from a misdemeanor?

How are felonies categorized in the UK?

What are the penalties typically associated with crimes categorized as Délits?

In which countries are criminal codes primarily used?

What distinguishes the role of judges in common law countries from that in civil law countries?

Which of the following statements about the United States criminal law system is true?

What was the significance of the Criminal Code enacted in Canada in 1892?

Which of the following statements is a characteristic of civil law countries?

Legal Systems

Civil law countries: Most European and Latin American countries, as well as many countries in Africa and Asia, use criminal codes. France uses the "code pénal".
Common law countries: English-speaking countries use statutes and case law. England has an uncodified system, meaning English criminal law is a collection of statutes and general principles mainly from court decisions.

Criminal Law in Specific Countries

Canada: Has a federal criminal code (1892), "the national code for the whole country". The Criminal Code was made law in 1892 by the Parliament of Canada in accordance with the Constitution Act of 1867, which gives the federal government power to make criminal laws and enforce them in self-governing jurisdictions in the British Empire.
Australia: Has a federal code plus state-based codes. The 8 Australian states and territories have powers to enact their own criminal laws. The Commonwealth also has the power to enact laws.
US: American criminal law is primarily a matter for the individual states in contrast to Canada. The 50 states have their own criminal codes. There were attempts to make a federal code (the 1962 Model Penal Code), but it was never enacted completely but influenced state codes. Title 18 of the US code deals with federal crime and criminal procedures.

Role of Judges

Judges apply the law as it is written (central role of the legislature in developing the legal code).
Judicial review: Judges interpret statutes or the constitution deriving from judicial interpretations of legislative statutes or the constitution.

This quiz explores the differences between civil law and common law systems, highlighting how various countries, such as Canada and Australia, implement their criminal laws. Understand the characteristics of criminal codes and how they apply in different jurisdictions around the world.