自強之路

在日文賞析亂入、英美法律人職稱判決簡介、與應觀眾要求介紹聖經相關英語之後，相信終於可以正式進入本單元的設計初衷 - 法學英文了。本周起，原則上 (有時會有特別節目插播喔！) 將陸續介紹英美法較進階之專有名詞及應用實例 (基礎篇請按這裡)；根據坊間英美法字典條目排序，每周視內容多寡和我有沒有加班選取十數字不等，結構極為簡單：一詞條、一中譯、下附例解或補充，自始一貫；例句皆為摘自報章雜誌或國外實務學界文章，或為解說、字典定義、或為判決主文、或為心得等等，其中有些文法瑕疵或個人認為用字較不妥或明顯誤用之處，我冒昧地稍作改動，在此先懇求原作者們的海涵；較難用字則隨附中解；又因本整理純為法學英文自修學習之用，惟求閱讀便利與篇幅經濟，改動處與出處只好忍痛省略。預計選取三百字左右，為今年學習目標。
有句話說得好：｢只要開始，永遠不會太遲。｣ 好，那我們從現在開始吧！

法學英文進階字彙：
1. Articles of Confederation = 聯邦條款
The Articles of Confederation was at best a rough draft for the United States Constitution. While it solved many of the new nation's problems for a short time, it had many more flaws. Under the Articles of Confederation the nation was united through a confederacy (聯邦政體), where the power was to govern the states rather than the nation. There was a mistake in that it allowed the states to act as miniature kingdoms with their own laws regarding local laws, regulations, foreign relations, trade, and treaties. The centralized government had no control over the states and chaos soon occurred.
2. the Constitutional Convention = 制憲會議
A Constitutional convention is an informal and uncodified (非立法的) procedural agreement that is followed by the institutions of a state. In some states, notably those Commonwealth of Nations (本為大英國協之意，此指美國麻州、賓州、肯州、維州等四個州) states which follow the Westminister system and whose political systems are derived from British constitutional law, most of the functions of government are guided by constitutional convention rather than by a formal written constitution.
3. the Bill of Rights = 權利法案
One of the most extraordinary documents in human history, the Bill of Rights, has come to an end under President Barack Obama. Derived from sacred principles of natural law, the Bill of Rights has come to a sudden and catastrophic end with the President's signing of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), a law that grants the U.S. military the "legal" right to conduct secret kidnappings of U.S. citizens, followed by indefinite detention, interrogation, torture and even murder.
4. amendments = (憲法) 增修條文
A constitutional amendment is a formal change to the text of the written constitution of a nation or state. 
Most constitutions require that amendments cannot be enacted unless they have passed a special procedure that is more stringent than that required of ordinary legislation. Examples of such special procedures include super-majorities (法定多數，其相對為普通多數 simple majority，即 50%) in the legislature, or direct approval by the electorate in a referendum (公投), or even a combination of two or more different special procedures. A referendum to amend the constitution may also be triggered in some jurisdictions by popular initiative.
5. advice and consent = 行使同意權
Advice and consent is a legal expression in the United States Constitution that allows the Senate to constrain the President's powers of appointment and treaty-making.
By authority of paragraph 7, article 2, of the constitution, the president exercises the rights of national patronage vested in the republic, and nominates the bishop (大主教) of the diocese (主教轄區), said nomination to be made upon presentation of three names by the legislative senate, with the advice and consent of the ecclesiastical senate or, in default (此指應與會主教未出席的狀況下) thereof, of the national clergy assembled.
6. supreme court = 最高法院
According to the UN, Nepal's supreme court ordered parliament to amend its rape law to allow prosecutions for marital rape.
7. House of Representatives = 眾議院
By unavowed (秘密的) ways they secured a strong support among the members of the National House of Rerresentatives and the Senate, the lower house in the bicameral legislatures (兩院立法制) of many countries.
8. judicial review = 違憲審查 (在我國為大法官釋憲)
Although a subsequent (appellate 上訴性質的) judicial review (not original jurisdiction 初審) shortened her sentence to seven years, Patricia Hearst was shipped off to the federal correctional institute in Pleasanton, California, where she served twenty-one months behind bars.
9. writs of certiorari = 調閱案件通知 (暫譯，於我國可能僅相當於司法行政處分態樣之一，你到法院時幫我問一下)
A writ of certiorari a common law (習慣法) writ issued by a superior court to one of inferior jurisdiction demanding the record of a particular case.
10. writ of summons = 傳票
A writ summons is a writ directing a person to appear in court to answer a complaint.
11. amicus curiae = 法庭審判諮商制度 (我國訴訟法體制中無該程序)
A party that is not involved in a particular litigation but that is allowed by the court to advise it on a matter of law directly affecting the litigation.
12. strict scrutiny = 嚴格審查
13. intermediary level scrutiny = 中度審查
14. rationality scrutiny = 寬鬆審查
Ex of 12~14: Strict scrutiny is the most stringent standard of judicial review used by United States courts (the less stringent come the intermediary level and rationality scrutiny). It is part of the hierarchy (階層) of standards that courts use to weigh the government's interest against a constitutional right or principle. The lesser standards are rational basis review and exacting or intermediate scrutiny. These standards are used to test statutes (法規命令，多指立法保留階段之法律) and government action at all levels of government within the United States. The notion of "levels of judicial scrutiny", including strict scrutiny, was introduced in footnote 4 of the U.S. Supreme Court decision in United States v. Carolene Products (1938), one of a series of decisions testing the constitutionality of New Deal legislation. The first and most notable case in which the Supreme Court applied the strict scrutiny standard and found the government actions valid was Korematsu v. United States (1944), in which the Court upheld (贊同；法律用語) the exclusion of Japanese Americans from designation areas during World War II. Statutes and policies that are subjected to strict scrutiny often but not always fail to meet it.

待續