Law Test

Law test – 5 sections – it is a1 hour test but you will be given 3 hours 

Part 1 – 20  multiple-choice questions

Part 1-4  long-answer questions

 you will be presented with a list of three questions from which you must select and answer one with a 100 to 150-word response. 

The long-answer questions will be taken from this question set, so you will be familiar with them and will have had the chance to prepare your answers in advance. 

UNIT 1 – LEGAL FOUNDATIONS 

1) Summarize the views on the law of two legal scholars or philosophers, one that subscribes to natural law theories and one that subscribes to positive law theories. Outline a fictional scenario that would cause disagreement between the two. Give your opinion as to which view makes the most sense in the modern world and explain your position. 

2) Identify and give examples of four categories of causes of legal change. Describe the circumstances that brought about one such change in the last twenty years. 

3) Write a biography of Dr. Henry Morgentaler that includes how he disagreed with the law in Canada, what he did to try to change it, and how the law eventually did change. 

4) Identify and describe aspects from at least three historic legal systems from different parts of the world, which have influenced the Canadian legal system. 

5) Describe one important historic change in Canadian law and the social or political factors that brought it about. Then describe the processes that were involved in creating the new law? Give your opinion as to whether it was a change for the better and explain your position. 

6) Identify and explain three prerequisites that generally need to exist for the law to evolve in a constructive way that reflects the values of society. 

7) Write a biography of Sue Rodriguez that includes how she disagreed with the law in Canada, what she did to try to change it, and the results of her efforts. 

UNIT 2 – RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS 

1) Outline Canada’s constitutional history from 1867 to the present. Summarize significant historical events, pieces of legislation, and political movements – whether successful or not. 

2) Summarize sections 1 and 33 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and explain how they are interrelated. Describe one example of when s.33 was invoked. 

3) Write definitions for common law, statute law, and the constitution. Consider all the possible ways that these sources of law could come into conflict and discuss how the conflicts would be resolved in each case. 

4) Trace the gradual expansion of human rights protection in Canada by comparing and contrasting the scope and effectiveness of English common law, the Canadian Bill of Rights, 1960, and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, 1982. 

5) Describe three different historical examples of the systemic infringement of human rights in Canada and then explain how our current laws would prevent such infringements from occurring in the future.

 6) List at least five powers that were granted to the federal government and five powers that were granted to the provincial government by sections 91 and 92 of the Constitution Act, 1867. Define intra vires and ultra vires in this context. 

7) Describe the seven different categories of rights and freedoms protected by the Charter. Summarize the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision for R. v. Keegstra (1990), including an explanation of how s. 1 of the Charter came into play. 

8) Trace the history of significant indicators of tensions between the French and English in Canada, from Confederation to the current status of the separatist movement in Quebec. 

UNIT 3 – CONFLICT RESOLUTION 

1) Identify the differences between crimes and regulatory offences and explain how the burden of proof for the latter has evolved in Canada. 

2) Explain the difference between negativing and affirmative defences and describe a number of examples of each. 

3) Define “restorative justice” and describe how the law of criminal sentencing has undergone reform in recent years. 

4) Write definitions of crime, mens rea, and actus reus and explain how they may be tied to either an objective or a subjective burden of proof. 

5) Trace the evolution of the law dealing with youth crime in Canada. 

6) Describe the most common categories of evidence that might be collected from a crime scene and explain what types of analyses forensic scientists might perform for each one. 

7) Define summary conviction offences, indictable offences, and hybrid offences and explain how the level of offence affects powers of arrest.

8) Trace the legal history of the rights of Canadian workers to form unions and to go on strike. Discuss the most important historic events and pieces of legislation that influenced these rights. 

9) Analyze the effects of free trade, globalization, and changing technologies on the workforce and explain any impact that they may have on the role of unions in workplace regulation. 

10) Chronicle the most important pieces of legislation that have affected the standard of living of workers in Ontario since Confederation. Briefly explain the significant changes introduced by each Act. 11) Describe the major differences that may exist between unionized and non-unionized workplaces. 12) Chronicle the most important pieces of legislation that have affected the safety of workers in Ontario since Confederation. Briefly explain the significant changes introduced by each Act. 

UNIT 4 – INTERNATIONAL LAW 

1) Chronicle the most important actions taken by governments within Canada with respect to the environment, since Confederation. Briefly explain the governments’ motivations as well as the significance of each action. 

2) Describe the various means that individuals, corporations, and lobby groups have at their disposal to pursue environmental goals through the legal system. 

3) Describe the steps involved in the negotiation and signing of international treaties in Canada. 

4) Summarize Canada’s current position with respect to claiming territorial rights in the Arctic. 

5) Describe the different types of circumstances in which the use of international military force  is considered legal