The Faculty of Law. My future profession: Lawyer.

 

The Faculty of Law is one of the country’s leading law schools. It is also one of the largest. It is housed in a teaching block on Socialistichesky Prospect. About 400 new students of daytime and extra-mural departments are admitted each year to read for the degree. The codification study-room adjoins the faculty and has tens of thousands of law books and journals, law reports, statutes and other legal materials. Computer terminals are available for use by students and give access to the massive legal database.

The faculty provides a great variety of teaching methods and methods of assessments: credit-tests, essays, and examinations.

The teaching staff of the Law Faculty is excellent and consists of 52 teachers with V. J. Muzykin, the dean, at its head.

There are seven departments at the law our faculty:

1. The Department of Criminal Law and Criminology;

2. The Department of Criminal Procedure and Criminalistics;

3. The Department of Constitutional and International Law;

4. The Department of Theory and History of State and Law;

5. The Department of Labor, Ecological Law and Civil Procedure;

6. The Department of Law Studies;

7. The Department of Civil Law.

The Department of Criminal Law and Criminology is one of the faculty’s leading departments. Alongside with experienced teachers (professors, professor assistants, law-science candidates) work young specialists, recent graduates of ASU. They deliver lectures and carry out seminars on Criminal Law, Criminology, Executive Law, procurator’s supervision, etc. The university’s first admission graduate, Doctor S.V.Zemlykov, heads the department.

The Department of Criminal Procedure and Criminalistics was founded in 1983. This department stimulates students’ interest in the secrets of crime commitment, its disclosure and prevention.

V.V.Nevinsky, Honored Lawyer of Russia, Doctor of Law, Professor is the head of The Department of Constitutional and International Law consisting of 15 staff members.

At The Department of Theory and History of State and Law, headed by N.N.Sorokin, a considerable part of studying hours is devoted to learning of state and municipal structures, financial, customs and international law and constitutional structure of Russia.

A successful combination of theory and practice can be noticed at The Department of Labor, Ecological Law and Civil Procedure headed by V.J.Muzykin, the dean of the Law Faculty.

Recently two more departments have been founded: The Department of Law Studies and The Department of Civil Law.

Law as an academic subject is a mixture of art, science and social science. Law is concerned with the structure and organization of society: it is the law that guarantees freedom in society. In that aspect law has some affinity with philosophy, politics, economics and sociology. The lawyer needs to turn general ideas and broad concepts into precise and workable rules. In this respect, students are encouraged to develop an investigative and critical attitude to the rules of law, to see the problems, to understand the nature of any difficulty and to think about its possible solution, to reason logically; to argue persuasively and to make independent judgments.

After graduation from the University the students are able to work in courts, procurator’s offices, in the sphere of preliminary investigations, at legal advice offices, arbitration bodies, etc.

Nowadays the profession of a lawyer is one of the most important in the law-governed state. The duty of lawyers is not only to punish people for various crimes but they must do their best to prevent crimes. They should help those people who committed an error to find the right road in their life. The lawyers protect the rights and legal interests of citizens, institutions and organizations.

In our country justice is exercised on the principles of equality of citizens before the law and the court, regardless of social position, property or official standing, nationality or race. The court’s mission is not just to meter out punishment, but rather to educate people in the spirit of strict observance of all laws, of labor discipline, appreciation of their duty to the state and society, respect for the rights and integrity of fellow citizens and the norms of behavior.

 

Task 1. Answer the questions:

1. Where is the faculty of law located?

2. What do the students of the faculty have at their disposal?

3. The teaching staff is highly qualified, isn’t it?

4. How many departments are there at the faculty?

5. What makes a good lawyer?

6. Why is the profession of a lawyer one of the most important nowadays?

7. What kind of specialists graduate from the Law faculty?

8. What problems do lawyers have to solve?

9. What are lawyer’s duties?

10. On what principles is justice exercised in our country?

Task 2. Translate the sentences from Russian into English:

1. Юридический факультет Алтайского Государственного Университета является одной из ведущих юридических школ в России.

2. Большое количество специальной литературы предоставляется в распоряжение студентам Университета.

3. Ежегодно на факультет зачисляется около 400 студентов на очную и заочную формы обучения.

4. На юридическом факультете существует семь кафедр.

5. После окончания АГУ студенты могут работать в суде, органах прокуратуры, органах внутренних дел, нотариате и т. д.

6. Задача юриста состоит в предупреждении совершении преступлений, а также в наказании лиц уже совершивших их.

7. Юристы защищают права и законные интересы гражданина.

 

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