Primary Sources of Law

Babylon

2000 BCE

Hammurabi was the King of an area in the Arabian Peninsula, and created the Code of Babylonian. Originally laws followed were based upon a community's traditions, mainly religion. If someone did not follow the rules they would be punished. Hammurabi's code created laws like, every offense will have an equal punishment. Some of the ways it impacts us today is, innocent until proven guilty, witnesses and evidence, and organized law.

Hebrew Law

1400 BCE

Hebrew law is credited to Moses who gave the people laws created by God. Moses created the first 5 books of the Bible. One of the main sets of laws created was the 10 Commandments. Some of the impacts on our legal system today is victims of a crime can be replayed for their problems, and some of the commandments are in the law, for example "Thou shall not kill".

Greek Law

895 BCE

Greece created democracy and the idea that citizens need to obey the laws. Originally only men could bring cases to court, and this was maintained for a long time all over the world. The impact that Greek Law has on Canadian laws today is that we are still a democratic society.

Roman Law

753 BCE

Canada does not directly follow Roman Law, however it does impact how trials are run today. Things like Tort Law, Codification, and lawyers are still a prevalent part of society. An example of how it is still relevant today is the Canadian government must provide a lawyer for anyone who can not afford one.

British Law

1276

The King was the main person who created the laws. He had land, which he would give to lords to do with what they saw fit. The lord could govern that land however they wished which meant that punishments were not equal. God was essentially given control about whether someone lived or died for a crime, since instead of a trial the defendant was put through a painful test. As a result laws like, a judge must base the outcome of a case off of one similar, the rule of law, and jury duty.

French Law

1800

The founder is Napoleon in the early 1800s. He created Napoleons code which was mainly focused on equality. It also enforced freedom of religion and government jobs going to the most qualified. Napoleons Code is still reflected in the Quebec Civil Code, and Canadian Law in general has the equality under law and freedom of religion.