Замените в предложениях глагольные формы в активном залоге на пассивные, как указано в примерах, и переведите их на русский язык

Examples:

MODEL 1The constitutiondefinesthe federative structure ofthe Russian Federation.

The federative structure of the Russian Federation is definedin the Constitution.

MODEL 2The constitutiondefinedthe federative structure ofthe Russian Federation.

The federative structure of the Russian Federation was definedin the Constitution (several years ago,yesterday, two days ago, the day before yesterday).

MODEL 3The constitutionwill definethe federative structureof the Russian Federation.

The federative structure of the Russian Federation will be definedin the Constitution (one of these days,tomorrow, in a week, in several months).

1. The Constitution of the Russian Federation defines the rights and freedoms of a human and a citizen.

2. The Constitution defined the Russian Federation as a secular state in

1993.

3. The Constitution contains the text of the oath taken by the President of the Russian Federation.

4. The Constitution determines the extent of the jurisdiction of the Russian Government.

5. The Constitution established the principles of independence, irremovability and immunity of judges when it was adopted.

6. The Constitution will regulate the issues of local self-government in a

year.

7. Part 2 of the Constitution contains Transitional and Final provisions.

Соотнесите слова из левой колонки с их определениями из правой колонки.

1) unofficial	a) freedom from favouritism, disinterest-
2) the legislative power	edness, fairness
	b) the quality or condition of being legally
3) immunity	qualified to perform an act
4) supervision
	c) a giving force to, authority, or effect to

5) the executive power	d) one who holds an office or position, es-
	pecially one who acts in a subordinate ca-
6) competence	pacity for an institution such as a corpora-
	tion or governmental agency
7) enforcement	e) the system of courts that interprets and
	applies the law in the name of the state
	f) the part of government that has sole au-
8) he judicial power	thority and responsibility for the daily ad-
	ministration of the state affairs
9) legal proceeding(s)	g) all actions that are authorized or sanc-
10) impartiality	tioned by law and instituted in a court or a
	tribunal for the acquisition of rights or the
	enforcement of remedies

h) authority belonging to an officially elected body of people vested with the re-sponsibility to make laws

i) authoritative control over the affairs of others

j) exemption from normal legal duties, penalties, or liabilities, granted to a special group of people

Переведите предложения, используя слова и словосочетания из текста.

1. Конституция Российской Федерации — Основной закон страны.

2. Конституция устанавливает основы социального, экономиче-ского и политического устройства России.

3. Конституция провозглашает идею приоритета прав и свобод че-ловека.

4. Носителем суверенитета и единственным источником власти в РФ является ее многонациональный народ.

5. Все граждане России равны перед законом и судом.

6. Статья 10 Конституции Российской Федерации предусматрива-ет принцип разделения государственной власти на законодательную, исполнительную и судебную.

7. Судебная власть осуществляется посредством конституционно-го, гражданского, административного и уголовного судопроизводства.

8. Согласно Конституции судьи обладают независимостью, не-сменяемостью и неприкосновенностью.

9. В компетенцию Прокуратуры входит надзор за исполнением за-конов всеми учреждениями, должностными лицами и гражданами.

10. При вступлении в должность Президент Российской Федера-ции приносит присягу.

UNIT 5. CONSTITUTIONS OF THE USA AND THE UK

TEXT 1

The US Constitution

Прочитайте текст и ответьте на вопросы.

1. When was the US Constitution adopted?

2. What does the US Constitution consist of?

3. How are the first 10 amendments to the US Constitution called?

4. What rights and liberties are protected under the Bill of Rights?

5. What kind of trial is guaranteed by the Bill of Rights?

6. What are the key features of the US Constitution?

7. What are the three branches of power according to the Constitution?

8. Is there a strict separation of powers in the USA?

9. Does any branch have more power than the others?

10. What duties does every branch have regarding the other branches under the principle of checks and balances?

The form of the US government is based on the Constitution of 1787 which was adopted after the War of Independence. The US Constitution consists of 7 articles and 27 amendments. The first 10 amendments are called the Bill of Rights and were adopted in 1791 under popular pressure.

The Bill of Rights is a series of limitations on the power of the United States federal government, protecting the natural rights and liberties, property including freedom of religion, freedom of speech, a free press, free assembly, and free association, as well as the right to keep and carry arms. In federal criminal cases, it requires indictment by a grand jury for any capital crime, guarantees a speedy, public trial with an impartial jury composed of members of the state in which the crime occurred.

A key feature of the US Constitution is federalism — the division of power between the national government and the states. Another major feature of the Constitution is the principle of the separation of powers within the national government. According to this principle the executive, legislative and judicial branches exercise powers that are largely separate and distinct. There is not a strict and complete separation of powers, the powers of the three branches overlap. Each branch has its own responsibilities, but no branch has more power than the other branches. There is the system of checks and balances. Under this principle each branch has certain duties to check the powers of the other branches. This system was meant to protect against the extremes since it makes compromise and consensus necessary.

The legislative branch is called the Congress which consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives. It is the responsibility of the Congress to propose and pass laws. In the system of checks and balances, Congress can refuse to approve Presidential appointments and can override presidential veto.

The executive branch consists of the President, the Vice President, the Cabinet and the 13 Departments, and also the independent agencies. Its responsibility is to enforce laws. According to the principle of checks and balances, the President has the power of veto to reject the bill of the Congress. He also appoints all Supreme Court Justices.

The judicial branch consists of the Supreme Court, 11 Circuit Courts of Appeals and 94 District Courts. This branch explains and interprets laws and makes decisions in lawsuits. It has the power over the other two branches and according to the principle of checks and balances can declare their actions and laws unconstitutional in case they violate the principles of the Constitution.

2. Выразите согласие/несогласие со следующими утверждениями, используя следующие речевые модели.

Model: a) I think it is true. The text tells us that …

b) To my mind, it is false because …

1. The US Constitution was adopted in 1918 after the World War I.

2. The first 10 amendments are called the Bill of Rights.

3. The Bill of Rights sets forth the structure of the Federal Government.

4. The key features of the US Constitution are federalism, the separation of powers and the system of checks and balances.

5. The legislative branch has more powers then the others.

6. The powers of the three branches don’t overlap.

7. The system of checks and balances was meant to protect against the extremes.

8. The responsibilities of the Congress are to protect the rights of citizens and enforce laws.

9. The executive branch consists of the President, the Vice President, the Cabinet and the 13 Departments, and also the independent agencies.

10. The judicial branch explains and interprets laws and makes decisions in lawsuits.

TEXT 2

The British Constitution

Прочитайте текст и ответьте на вопросы.

1. What makes the UK Constitution different from other constitutions?

2. What are the sources of the UK Constitution?

3. What is the core principle of the UK Constitution?

4. What bodies represent the three branches of power (executive, legislative and judiciary)?

The British Constitution is unwritten unlike the constitution in America or the proposed European Constitution, and as such, is referred to as an uncodified constitution in the sense that there is no single document that can be identified as Britain’s constitution. The British Constitution can be found in a variety of documents. The main ones are: Statutes (the Magna Carta of 1215 and the Act of Settlement of 1701), Acts of Parliament; customs and traditions, political conventions, case law; constitutional matters decided in a court of law.

Since the English Civil War, the core principle of the British constitution has traditionally been the doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty, according to which the statutes passed by Parliament are the UK’s supreme and final source of law. It follows that Parliament can change the constitution simply by passing new Acts of Parliament to be followed by the Royal Assent. There is some debate about whether this principle remains entirely valid today, in part due to the UK’s European Union membership.

According to the doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty, Parliament may pass any legislation that it wishes. There are many Acts of Parliament which themselves have constitutional significance. For example, Parliament has the power to determine the length of its own term. However, the Sovereign retains the power to dissolve Parliament at any time on the advice of the Prime Minister. Parliament also has the power to change the structure of its constituent Houses and the relation between them.

Parliament consists of the Sovereign, the House of Commons and the House of Lords. All the legislation must receive the approval of the Sovereign (the Royal Assent). Following the accession of the UK to European Economic Community (now the European Union) in 1972, the UK became bound by European law and more importantly, the principle of the supremacy of European Union law.

The House of Commons alone possesses the power to pass a motion of no-confidence in the Government, which requires the Government either to resign or seek fresh elections. Such a motion does not require passage by the Lords, or the Royal Assent. Parliament traditionally also has the power to remove individual members of the government by impeachment. By the Constitutional Reform Act2005 it has the power to remove individual judges from office for misconduct.

The executive power in the United Kingdom is exercised by the Sovereign through Her Majesty’s Government. The monarch appoints the

Prime Minister as the head of Her Majesty’s Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister then selects the other Ministers which make up the Government. As in some other parliamentary systems of government, the executive is accountable to Parliament.

The Courts of the United Kingdom are divided into three separate jurisdictions serving England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, since the United Kingdom does not have a single unified judicial system.

The Constitutional Reform Act 2005 created a new Supreme Court of the United Kingdom to take over the judicial functions of the House of Lords and devolution cases from the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. The Supreme Court began its work in 2009, and serves as the highest court of appeal in England, Wales and in Northern Ireland, and for civil cases in Scotland. The High Court of Justiciary remains the court of last resort in Scotland for criminal cases.

4. Выразите согласие/несогласие со следующими утверждениями.

1. The British Constitution is unwritten unlike the Constitutions of the USA and the proposed European Constitution.

2. The British Constitution can be found in a variety of documents.

3. Amendments to the British Constitution need the approval of both Houses of Parliament, but they do not need the Royal Assent.

4. Parliamentary sovereignty has always been the core principle of the British Constitution.

5. The Sovereign has no power to dissolve Parliament.

6. Parliament has no power to change the structure of its houses.

7. The British Parliament consists of the House of Commons and the House of Lords.

8. The European law has priority over the UK law.

9. The executive power in the United Kingdom is exercised by the Sovereign.

10. The Constitutional Reform Act 2005 created a new Supreme Court of the United Kingdom.