Civic Codes

[richardg]

Just talking with my (French) girlfriend about these. She says they protect the people. I say they get in the way.

Any thoughts here?

 

[PsB]

What do you mean by "civic codes"?
Could she be thinking of something slightly different (I dunno, such as the code civil could be perceived as protecting people's rights)?

 

[richardg]

What do you mean by "civic codes"?
Could she be thinking of something slightly different (I dunno, such as the code civil could be perceived as protecting people's rights)?

Yes sorry.....civil codes. Her daughter is studying law and left a copy on the table.

 

[Bob McC]

Still no idea what they are and I'm in France now.

 

[richardg]

Still no idea what they are and I'm in France now.

There's quite a bit more in there than the ten commandments! I wonder what happened when the internet was invented.......obvs it was not always in the civil code and until it was would not be allowed ...I think I got the principle right.

 

[Mike Reed]

Is it a polite form of the Highway code or maybe respectful conduct in public areas, like 'No pissing in the piscine'?

 

[Bob McC]

Not going to give us a clue then

 

[gintonic]

these

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nap...h: Code,in force, although frequently amended.

 

[Enfield boy]

Is this similar to case law precedent etc in the UK where past significant cases are used as guidance for the future? Except, of course, if a rich person is involved that can afford better representation (any rep now legal aid is no more) go to appeal and so on and price the poorer person out of justice.

 

[richardg]

Is this similar to case law precedent etc in the UK where past significant cases are used as guidance for the future? Except, of course, if a rich person is involved that can afford better representation (any rep now legal aid is no more) go to appeal and so on and price the poorer person out of justice.

Something like that!!

Or the difference between you're not allowed to do anything until we tell you you can versus you can do what you like until we tell you to stop.

 

[Enfield boy]

Or, you thought you couldn't do that until some rich bastard with a fancy lawyer came along to change the code oops, rules.

 

[Joe Hutch]

The version I remember:

In Britain, you are allowed to do something unless it is forbidden
In France, you are forbidden to do anything unless it is allowed
In Germany, everything you are allowed to do is also compulsory

 

[richardg]

The version I remember:

In Britain, you are allowed to do something unless it is forbidden
In France, you are forbidden to do anything unless it is allowed
In Germany, everything you are allowed to do is also compulsory

Haha! The germans have a lot on their plates.

I'd like to hear of some examples where someone has come up with something reasonable and well meaning but had been told he can't because what he wants to do is not in the code.

 

[Cheese]

Yes sorry.....civil codes. Her daughter is studying law and left a copy on the table.

Isn’t it (or something similar) used in the UK ? We read some of it at school, especially the bits about marriage, inheritance etc.

In which book do you Brits find this sort of laws ?

 

[Cheese]

In Germany, everything you are allowed to do is also compulsory

unless you live in Berlin, chaos even by Italian standards

 

[richardg]

Isn’t it (or something similar) used in the UK ? We read some of it at school, especially the bits about marriage, inheritance etc.

In which book do you Brits find this sort of laws ?

There is no civil code in the UK. It's possibly what has made our relationship with Europe so difficult over the years?

 

[Cheese]

There is no civil code in the UK. It's possibly what has made our relationship with Europe so difficult over the years?

Maybe, but basic rules like ‘marriage means the merger of the material goods of both parties’ or ‘divorce means that goods are split in half between the spouses’ must certainly be written down somewhere for everyone to read ?

 

[richardg]

Maybe, but basic rules like ‘marriage means the merger of the material goods of both parties’ or ‘divorce means that goods are split in half between the spouses’ must certainly be written down somewhere for everyone to read ?

Yes by precedent in common law I suppose

 

[Joe Hutch]

And by specific Acts of Parliament; for example married women’s property was automatically their husbands’ property until well into the 19th century, and every divorce required an Act of Parliament for most of that century, so divorce was effectively impossible for all but the rich.

Britain also differs from Continental Europe in having the presumption of innocence built into its legal system. This in turn means that a person accused of a crime has the absolute right to remain silent, since it is for the prosecution to prove his/her guilt. In this respect at least, British law is more akin to US than to European law.

 

[MikeMA]

There is no civil code in the UK. It's possibly what has made our relationship with Europe so difficult over the years?

Yes this has been argued before. The Anglo Saxon approach - everything is permitted unless it's forbidden, versus the Continental European approach - everything is forbidden unless it's permitted, and then we have the Anglo Saxon contestatorial versus Continental inquisitorial legal systems.