Legal English
Tue & Thu 19:00-21:00
Course Objectives
Those students successfully completing the course will receive a Pericles Certificate of Completion.
Prerequisite
To assess your general English level, you can take an English Proficiency Test offered by Pericles by creating a student account and clicking 'Login to Moodle'>'Proceed to Moodle'> Enroll me'.
If you need help with the test, please call for more information at 8 495 649 22 73.
Course Length
9 to 12 Weeks, depending on the group. 60 in-class academic hours (48 clock hours). Please check the course schedule for these details.
Methodology
The cost of the course includes Pericles’ specially authored course book as well as exclusive access to supplemental online materials, including videos and excerpts from legal films and documentaries.
The course has two sessions per week for two to three hours each (depending on the group). Through the examination of key business law themes, the class sessions provide an interactive learning style to enhance students' reading comprehension, speaking skills, and legal vocabulary.
Subjects to be Covered
Sources of Law, Trial Process, Torts and Crimes, Contract Law, Property, Secured Transactions, Commercial Paper, Business Organizations Law.
Students will learn to put the language of these subjects into practice through class exercises, negotiations and dispute resolution scenarios.
Main actors in US and British legal systems: lawyer, attorney, barrister, solicitor, judge, jury, grand jury, magistrate, etc.; Differences between civil and common law systems’ traditions; Legal education and court systems in the US and Britain.
Differences in civil and criminal courts; Trial process terminology: jurisdiction, venue, pleadings, voir dire, etc.; Discussion of the discovery process and court hearings in Anglo-Saxon legal systems.
Comparison of crime and tort terminology; depending on the group, discussion of differences between Russian and Anglo-Saxon legal concepts: mens rea, burdens of proof, defenses to negligence, etc.
Phraseology: “marked to the contract”, time is of the essence, “as is”, implied warranty of merchantability, etc.; Discussion of contract concepts, and depending on the group, comparing Anglo-Saxon legal systems to that of Russia: consideration, transfer of legal versus equitable title, remedies for breach of contracts; Types of contracts: sale of goods, service, lease, etc.; Terminology related to contract formation.
Discussion of the nature and classification of business property in the United Kingdom and the United States; Estates: estate in expectancy, estate in possession, etc.; Terminology: warranty of habitability, eminent domain, covenant of quiet enjoyment, etc.; Regulating land use: zoning, building requirements, subdivision regulation.
Security transaction instruments: pledge, mortgage, chattel paper; Examination of secured transactions under Article 9 of the UCC; Other provisions protecting creditor’s rights: liens, garnishments, creditor’s composition agreements, and assignments for the benefit of the creditors.
Types of commercial paper: money paper, commodity paper, and investment paper; Elements of negotiable instruments: drafts & notes - promissory note, collateral note, balloon note, draft, “bill of exchange”; Financial concepts: holder in due course (HDC), lien on instrument, warranties on presentment, discharge.
Roles of officers and directors in Anglo-Saxon corporate law; Corporate governance terminology: concepts of fiduciary duty, corporate opportunity doctrine, business judgment rule, derivative suits, etc.; Concepts of corporate finance: paid-in capital, surplus capital, rights issues, etc.