Adultery In English Law
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Adultery In English Law
The history of adultery in English law is a complex topic, including changing understandings of what sexual acts constituted adultery (whereby they sometimes overlap with abduction and rape), unequal treatment of men and women under the law, and competing jurisdictions of secular and ecclesiastical authorities. Prosecution for adultery as such ceased to be possible in English law in 1970. Early medieval England Prior to the unification of England in the tenth century, various forms of adultery were punishable in laws codified by Anglo-Saxon kings.Jeremy D. Weinstein"Adultery, Law, and the State: A History" ''Hastings Law Journal'', 38.1 (1986), 195–238. These laws usually conceptualised what is now called adultery in terms of damage to men's property, since women were understood to be under the control of male relatives or, after marriage, their husbands. Compensation payments were linked, as in many other kinds of crime, to the social rank of the offended man, and the laws do ...
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Adultery
Adultery (from Latin ''adulterium'') is extramarital sex that is considered objectionable on social, religious, moral, or legal grounds. Although the sexual activities that constitute adultery vary, as well as the social, religious, and legal consequences, the concept exists in many cultures and is similar in Christianity, Judaism and Islam. Adultery is viewed by many jurisdictions as offensive to public morals, undermining the marriage relationship. Historically, many cultures considered adultery a very serious crime, some subject to severe punishment, usually for the woman and sometimes for the man, with penalties including capital punishment, mutilation, or torture. Such punishments have gradually fallen into disfavor, especially in Western countries from the 19th century. In countries where adultery is still a criminal offense, punishments range from fines to caning and even capital punishment. Since the 20th century, criminal laws against adultery have become controversi ...
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Common Law
In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipresence in the sky, but the articulate voice of some sovereign or quasi sovereign that can be identified," ''Southern Pacific Company v. Jensen'', 244 U.S. 205, 222 (1917) (Oliver Wendell Holmes, dissenting). By the early 20th century, legal professionals had come to reject any idea of a higher or natural law, or a law above the law. The law arises through the act of a sovereign, whether that sovereign speaks through a legislature, executive, or judicial officer. The defining characteristic of common law is that it arises as precedent. Common law courts look to the past decisions of courts to synthesize the legal principles of past cases. '' Stare decisis'', the principle that cases should be decided according to consistent principled rules so ...
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Ecclesiastical Court
An ecclesiastical court, also called court Christian or court spiritual, is any of certain courts having jurisdiction mainly in spiritual or religious matters. In the Middle Ages, these courts had much wider powers in many areas of Europe than before the development of nation states. They were experts in interpreting canon law, a basis of which was the ''Corpus Juris Civilis'' of Justinian, which is considered the source of the civil law legal tradition. Catholic Church The tribunals of the Catholic Church are governed by the 1983 Code of Canon Law in the case of the Western Church (Latin Church), and the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches in the case of the Eastern Catholic Churches (Byzantine, Ukrainian, Maronite, Melkite, etc.). Both systems of canon law underwent general revisions in the late 20th century, resulting in the new code for the Latin Church in 1983, and the compilation for the first time of the Eastern Code in 1990. First instance Cases normally originate in ...
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Divorce In England And Wales
In England and Wales, divorce is allowed under the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020 on the ground that the marriage has irretrievably broken down without having to prove fault or separation. Civil remarriage is allowed. Religions and denominations differ on whether they permit religious remarriage. A divorce in England and Wales is only possible for marriages of more than one year and when the marriage has irretrievably broken down. Whilst it is possible to defend a divorce, the vast majority proceed on an undefended basis. A decree of divorce is initially granted 'nisi', i.e. (unless cause is later shown), before it is made 'absolute'. History Historically, divorce was not administered as such by the barristers who practised in the common law courts but by the "advocates" and "proctors" who practised civil law from Doctors' Commons, adding to the obscurity of the proceedings.Squibb (1977) ''pp'' 104–105. Divorce was ''de facto'' restricted to the very wealthy a ...
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Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1970
Law is a set of rules that are created and are law enforcement, enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a Social science#Law, science and as the art of justice. State-enforced laws can be made by a group legislature or by a single legislator, resulting in statutes; by the executive through decrees and regulations; or established by judges through precedent, usually in common law jurisdictions. Private individuals may create legally binding contracts, including arbitration agreements that adopt Alternative dispute resolution, alternative ways of resolving disputes to standard court litigation. The creation of laws themselves may be influenced by a constitution, written or tacit, and the rights encoded therein. The law shapes politics, economics, history and society in various ways and serves as a mediator of ...
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Criminal Conversation
At common law, criminal conversation, often abbreviated as ''crim. con.'', is a tort arising from adultery. "Conversation" is an old euphemism for sexual intercourse that is obsolete except as part of this term. It is similar to breach of promise, a tort involving a broken engagement against the betrothed, and alienation of affections, a tort action brought by a spouse against a third party, who interfered with the marriage relationship. These torts have been abolished in most jurisdictions. The tort of criminal conversation was abolished in England and Wales in 1857; in Northern Ireland in 1939; in Australia in 1975; and in the Republic of Ireland in 1981. Prior to its abolition, a husband could sue any man who had intercourse with his wife, regardless of whether she consented – unless the couple was already separated, in which case the husband could only sue if the separation was caused by the person he was suing. Criminal conversation still exists in parts of the Unit ...
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Tort Law
A tort is a civil wrong that causes a claimant to suffer loss or harm, resulting in legal liability for the person who commits the tortious act. Tort law can be contrasted with criminal law, which deals with criminal wrongs that are punishable by the state. While criminal law aims to punish individuals who commit crimes, tort law aims to compensate individuals who suffer harm as a result of the actions of others. Some wrongful acts, such as assault and battery, can result in both a civil lawsuit and a criminal prosecution in countries where the civil and criminal legal systems are separate. Tort law may also be contrasted with contract law, which provides civil remedies after breach of a duty that arises from a contract. Obligations in both tort and criminal law are more fundamental and are imposed regardless of whether the parties have a contract. While tort law in civil law jurisdictions largely derives from Roman law, common law jurisdictions derive their tort law from cus ...
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Civil Law (common Law)
Civil law is a major branch of the law. Glanville Williams. ''Learning the Law''. Eleventh Edition. Stevens. 1982. p. 2. In common law legal systems such as England and Wales and the United States, the term refers to non- criminal law. The law relating to civil wrongs and quasi-contracts is part of the civil law, as is law of property (other than property-related crimes, such as theft or vandalism). Civil law may, like criminal law, be divided into substantive law and procedural law. The rights and duties of persons (natural persons and legal persons) amongst themselves is the primary concern of civil law. It is often suggested that civil proceedings are taken for the purpose of obtaining compensation for injury, and may thus be distinguished from criminal proceedings, whose purpose is to inflict punishment. However, exemplary damages or punitive damages may be awarded in civil proceedings. It was also formerly possible for common informers to sue for a penalty in civil procee ...
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Loss Of Consortium
Loss of consortium is a term used in the law of torts that refers to the deprivation of the benefits of a family relationship due to injuries caused by a tortfeasor. In this context, the word ''consortium'' means "(the right of) association and fellowship between two married people". Damages may be claimed under three theories: incurred medical costs or those yet to be incurred by the plaintiff, the loss of an injured spouse's services, and loss of society (within certain parameters). The common law rule of consortium has been amended or abolished by statute in many jurisdictions. The availability of loss of consortium differs drastically among common law jurisdictions and does not exist at all in several of them. Damages for loss of consortium are considered separately from, and are not to be confused with compensatory damages. Terminology and theory The action was originally expressed in the Latin phrase "per quod servitium et consortium amisit" ("in consequence of which he lost ...
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Stuart Restoration
The Restoration of the Stuart monarchy in the kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland took place in 1660 when King Charles II returned from exile in continental Europe. The preceding period of the Protectorate and the civil wars came to be known as the Interregnum (1649–1660). The term ''Restoration'' is also used to describe the period of several years after, in which a new political settlement was established. It is very often used to cover the whole reign of King Charles II (1660–1685) and often the brief reign of his younger brother King James II (1685–1688). In certain contexts it may be used to cover the whole period of the later Stuart monarchs as far as the death of Queen Anne and the accession of the Hanoverian King George I in 1714. For example, Restoration comedy typically encompasses works written as late as 1710. The Protectorate After Richard Cromwell, Lord Protector from 1658 to 1659, ceded power to the Rump Parliament, Charles Fleetwood and J ...
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Fornication
Fornication is generally consensual sexual intercourse between two people not married to each other. When one or more of the partners having consensual sexual intercourse is married to another person, it is called adultery. Nonetheless, John Calvin viewed adultery to be any sexual act that is outside the divine model for sexual intercourse, which includes fornication. For many people, the term carries an overtone of moral or religious disapproval, but the significance of sexual acts to which the term is applied varies between religions, societies and cultures. In modern usage, the term is often replaced with more judgment-neutral terms like ''premarital sex'', ''extramarital sex'', or ''recreational sex''. Etymology and usage In the original Greek version of the New Testament, the term ''porneia'' (πορνεία – " prostitution") is used 25 times (including variants such as the genitive πορνείας). In the late 4th century, the Latin Vulgate, a Latin translation ...
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Commonwealth (Adultery) Act
The Commonwealth (Adultery) Act of May 1650 was an act of the English Rump Parliament. It imposed the death penalty for incest and adultery, and three months' imprisonment for fornication. It did not apply to women whose husbands were absent for more than three years and not known to be living. Like other legislation passed by the Commonwealth of England, the act was repealed following the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660. In the history of adultery in English law The history of adultery in English law is a complex topic, including changing understandings of what sexual acts constituted adultery (whereby they sometimes overlap with abduction and rape), unequal treatment of men and women under the law, and c ..., the Act represents the only time since the twelfth century when adultery has been outlawed in secular statute law. References External links Commonwealth (Adultery) Act 1650 Repealed British legislation {{England-law-stub ...
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