SS1 Civic Education Lesson Note on Types of Laws and Rights of Individuals

The website has the complete lesson note for all the subjects in secondary school but this piece showcases the SS1 Civic Education Lesson Note on Types of Laws and Rights of Individuals. You can use the website search button to filter out the subject of interest to you.

CLICK HERE to download the complete Document: DOWNLOAD HERE

TOPIC: Goals of citizenship education

CONTENT:

1. Types of laws and rights of individuals.
2. Functions and structures of government

Sub-Topic 1: Types of laws and rights of individuals.

Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behaviour. Laws are made by governments. The law shapes politics, economics and society in countless ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. We have criminal law, which deals with misconduct, that is designated by the government in which the guilty party may be imprisoned or fined.

Civil law deals with disputes between individuals or organizations.

Under civil law the following specialization among others exists:

1. Contract law: Regulates everything from buying a bus ticket to trading on derivative markets.
2. Property law regulates the transfer and title of personal property and real property.
3. Trust law applies to assets held for investment and financial security.
4. Administrative law is used to review the decision of government agencies.
5. International law governs affairs between sovereign states in activities ranging from trade to military action.

Types or forms of law

1. Constitutional law: This refers to the laws or provisions contained in the constitution of a country.
2. Statute law: are those laws made by the legislative house or assembly. Also known as Acts of parliament.
3. Customary law: This refers to the laws that are derived or extracted from the customs and traditions of the people.
4. Bye-law: These are laws made by local authorities who are only valid, operational or binding on the people living within the confines of the local authority.
5. Delegated legislation: These are laws, rules and regulation made by other bodies apart from the legislature under powers specifically conferred or granted them by the legislative organ of government.

Rights of individuals

The rights of a citizen could be defined as those privileges guaranteed by law to be enjoyed by a citizen of a country. Human rights refer to claims which individuals or groups make on society. Some of the basic rights of individual in Nigeria are:

• Right to life which nobody shall intentionally deprive a citizen of his life
• Right to freedom.
• Right to freedom from slavery and forced labour.
• Right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.
• Right to privacy, family, home or correspondence without being attacked.
• Right to freedom of movement and residence within the territory of a state.
• Right to freedom of expression and the press
• Right to ownership of property
• Right to education
• Right to vote and to be voted for in any election
• Right to hold public office no matter how sensitive
• Right to free and equal hearing

Click on the Downloadable Button to get the FULL NOTE