Page | 1
Gov 200 exam 2 Questions with
Detailed Verified Answers
Question: What are the main characteristics of Common Law?
Answer: Common Law is based on judicial precedent, where courts make
decisions based on past cases and evolving legal principles. It is a law that is
common to all, meaning that it is law made up of common sense, prudence,
and judgments of wise men that gradually evolved over time, not law created
by a legislature.
Question:
What are the main characteristics of Civil Law?
Answer: Civil Law is based on written statutes and legal codes, where laws
are codified and courts apply them rather than relying on past judicial
decisions. It was formed through legislation and political thought.
Additionally, it does not employ a jury in rulings and instead relies on the code
of civil law and evidence to determine sentencing and decisions.
Question:
Where did Common Law originate?
Answer: Common Law originated in Anglo-Saxon England but was primarily
shaped during the reign of King Henry II.
Question:
Where did Civil Law originate?
, Page | 2
Answer: Civil Law also called Roman Law, was developed in Europe
throughout the 6th century. Roman Empire Justinian brought the compliation
of the Justinian Code, or Corpus Juris Civilis (Body of Civil Law), in 529
Question:
What is judicial precedent?
Answer: Judicial precedent, adn decisions, set up a legal framework for future
judges to apply previous decisions to similar cases to ensure legal stability.
Question:
What is Stare Decisis?
Answer: Latin: Stare Decisis. meaning: "stand by things decided." while
precedent can be binding for lower courts, precedent is not binding for the
higher courts that set it.
Question:
define judicial precedent and understand its relation to common law and stare
decisis
Answer: Examples: King Henry II set many precedents with Common Law,
such as:
a. disputes coming before a court
b. changed the perception of justice from royal grace (king's mood) to a right
c. Having many judges instead of one or two judges for a city
d. Having facts sworn in front of a jury
e. Jurisdiction from not only the city but to the countryside
Question:
, Page | 3
How does Civil Law differ from Common Law in terms of statute and
precedent?
Answer: Civil Law more closely follows the strict letter of the law, ignoring
past precedents or other facts. primarily concerned with the hard facts of
whether a law was followed to its code or not
An example of this in the US would be codes of building or health and safety
regulations
Judges were required to follow its statutes, limiting their discretionary
freedom. the law was ultimate and this lex script or written law, was to be
strictly followed
Question:
What is the difference between codified and uncodified law?
Answer: common law is the unmodified (unwritten) law created through
precedent.
Civil law is the codified (written) law of the land and its formed through
legislation and political thought
Question:
How did the Napoleonic Code impact modern law?
Gov 200 exam 2 Questions with
Detailed Verified Answers
Question: What are the main characteristics of Common Law?
Answer: Common Law is based on judicial precedent, where courts make
decisions based on past cases and evolving legal principles. It is a law that is
common to all, meaning that it is law made up of common sense, prudence,
and judgments of wise men that gradually evolved over time, not law created
by a legislature.
Question:
What are the main characteristics of Civil Law?
Answer: Civil Law is based on written statutes and legal codes, where laws
are codified and courts apply them rather than relying on past judicial
decisions. It was formed through legislation and political thought.
Additionally, it does not employ a jury in rulings and instead relies on the code
of civil law and evidence to determine sentencing and decisions.
Question:
Where did Common Law originate?
Answer: Common Law originated in Anglo-Saxon England but was primarily
shaped during the reign of King Henry II.
Question:
Where did Civil Law originate?
, Page | 2
Answer: Civil Law also called Roman Law, was developed in Europe
throughout the 6th century. Roman Empire Justinian brought the compliation
of the Justinian Code, or Corpus Juris Civilis (Body of Civil Law), in 529
Question:
What is judicial precedent?
Answer: Judicial precedent, adn decisions, set up a legal framework for future
judges to apply previous decisions to similar cases to ensure legal stability.
Question:
What is Stare Decisis?
Answer: Latin: Stare Decisis. meaning: "stand by things decided." while
precedent can be binding for lower courts, precedent is not binding for the
higher courts that set it.
Question:
define judicial precedent and understand its relation to common law and stare
decisis
Answer: Examples: King Henry II set many precedents with Common Law,
such as:
a. disputes coming before a court
b. changed the perception of justice from royal grace (king's mood) to a right
c. Having many judges instead of one or two judges for a city
d. Having facts sworn in front of a jury
e. Jurisdiction from not only the city but to the countryside
Question:
, Page | 3
How does Civil Law differ from Common Law in terms of statute and
precedent?
Answer: Civil Law more closely follows the strict letter of the law, ignoring
past precedents or other facts. primarily concerned with the hard facts of
whether a law was followed to its code or not
An example of this in the US would be codes of building or health and safety
regulations
Judges were required to follow its statutes, limiting their discretionary
freedom. the law was ultimate and this lex script or written law, was to be
strictly followed
Question:
What is the difference between codified and uncodified law?
Answer: common law is the unmodified (unwritten) law created through
precedent.
Civil law is the codified (written) law of the land and its formed through
legislation and political thought
Question:
How did the Napoleonic Code impact modern law?
