[MUSIC] So far in this lesson, we have focused on the various types of political systems found in the world. But a political system is only a framework. Within a nation's political system, there must be a legal system which serves to operationalize and implement the political system. In this video, we will investigate the major types of legal systems employed in the world's nations. National laws derived from political system of a country. So, a national legal system is a mechanism to create, interpret and enforce national laws. There are five principal types of legal systems. There are civil law systems, common law systems, theocratic law systems, customary law systems, and mixed legal systems. Let's look at each of these, civil law systems are based on a set of codes established by the political system, essentially a rule book of fixed and explicit codes and statues. Laws and statutes are created by legislation, they are usually comprehensive and they're frequently updated. They stressed clarity and accessibility, and they're sometimes called statutory law because they're well based on statutes. Historical basis for civil law is the Napoleonic law established in 1804 with Napoleon's code. It was the first pan-European legal structure in the book to the right is an early copy of the Napoleonic code, including a regal portrait of Napoleon himself. Napoleon wasn't known for successive modesty. It subsequently gained global influence and was widely adopted details very significantly by country, but it is the most widely used legal system internationally. Common law systems focus on case law precedent where courts rely on custom and precedent rather than statutes. So, it's sometimes called case law. It uses historical decisions to resolve current cases. Common law follows the principle that over time similar facts should yield similar results. So, precedence has equal standing with statutes and regulations that might be established by the state. Common law precepts evolved in England over many centuries and remains dominant in England and its ex colonies such as the US, Canada, Australia, and South Africa. Courts in many common law countries retained the traditional trappings of the old British courts, including red robes and powdered wigs such as these Zimbabwean judges, pictured to the right. Customary law is based on standards and traditions that are widely accepted as law by a community. They include rights and obligations obtained through long custom. Customary laws are often unwritten, instead are passed down through the generations is our old traditions and stories. Customary law is sometimes called tribal law because it historically was practiced by clans and tribes rather than nations. The picture to the right shows village elders conferring on an important point of law in 19th century Ukraine. Today, customary laws are often combined with civil or common law systems. Examples include Ireland, India, and many countries in Africa and often developing countries will have some form of customary law as part of their legal system. Theocratic law is based on religious precepts and requirements. Law emanates from religious texts and traditions such as those found in Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism and Islam. At the present time, the dominant examples of theocratic law are countries that observe Sharia law based on the Islamic Quran. Countries with strong Sharia legal systems include Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Ethiopia, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. In mixed legal systems, two or more of the previous systems are combined to form a composite legal system. Many countries have mixed systems, for example, South Africa, Scotland, and Puerto Rico makes common law with civil law. China, Japan, Korea, and Ethiopia combined civil law with customary law. Common and customary law systems are combined in Ghana, Hong Kong Nepal and Uganda. And civil and theocratic law systems are combined in Iran, Egypt, Iraq, and Algeria. This map shows the dispersion of legal systems around the world, civil law dominates much of the world followed by common law. As a side note, Quebec and Canada Louisiana in the US, and French Guiana in South America practice a form of civil law mixed with common law. Since these regions were first settled by french immigrants who practiced Napoleonic law. It was a video for a moment to examine this distribution. Businesses abroad should be well aware of the legal underpinnings of the countries in which they operate. For example, civil law systems are investigatory, not adversarial. Judges established facts, then they render decisions based on statutes and those facts. In contrast, common law systems are adversarial, not investigative. Judges moderate the arguments of two opposing parties and then juries determine outcomes. So, arguing a case in a common law court is very different from fact finding in a civil law court. Convincing a judge of the facts is very different from convincing a jury with emotional appeals. And when doing business in Sharia law systems, it's important to know that lenders cannot charge interest because of religious prescriptions against usury. So, banks and lenders substitute upfront fees at least backs and repurchase agreements instead of charging interest. These practical differences in legal systems are important to understand when operating internationally. Summarizing, there are five main legal systems. There is a civil law based on statutes, common law based on precedents, customary law based on tradition, theocratic Law based on religion and mixed systems, which are combinations of the above. Details vary widely between nations. In any business working abroad must be careful to know the legal ground rules in the countries in which it operates. Because they vary so significantly from country to country. If you don't know the rules, you're going to get in trouble. In the next video, we'll examine the rule of law. There's one thing to have a good laws on the books, but where and how those laws are applied can be another matter. We'll see you soon.
