Lecture 2

 When employers of newly qualified

information systems professionals are asked
what it is they would most like them to
know, the answer is very rarely technical.
 Much more commonly, the answer is an
understanding of the business environment.
After reading this chapter, you should:
 Understand the nature of the law and the
difference between criminal law and civil
law
 Understand what is meant by the terms
legislature, judiciary and executive and
appreciate the variety of ways in which these
concepts are implemented in different
countries
 Understand the ways in which law comes
into existence
We shall define law as
 ‘a set of rules that can be enforced in a
court’.
 e.g. divorce, alcohol
 the rights of access to information, and the
misuse of computers
 Jurisdiction
is the area covered by a single
legal system and set of laws.
Criminal Law
 The set of mechanisms that tries to punish
wrongdoers, by fines or imprisonment
 It represents society’s view of the minimum
standard of acceptable behavior.
 It defines:
 what constitutes a crime
 lays down the mechanisms for deciding whether
a person accused of a crime is guilty or innocent
 specifies the range of punishments applicable to
different categories of crime
Civil Law
 The purpose of the civil law is to provide
rules for settling disputes between people.
 Court action under the civil law is known as
litigation.
 It must be initiated by one of the parties to the
dispute, that is, by the person, legal or natural,
who feels he has been wronged.
 Theperson who initiates the court action is
known as the plaintiff.
Two important differences
 Standard of Proof
 In criminal offence, prosecution to prove guilty
beyond all reasonable doubt.
 In civil law, plaintiff is required only to show that his
claim is correct on the balance of probabilities
 Higher standard of proof for criminal cases

 Burden of Proof
 The burden of proof lies on the prosecution in
criminal case.
 In a civil case, both parties present their arguments
and must convince the court of their correctness.
 Legislative powers are divided between
federation and provincial assemblies
 Federal and provincial legislatures are
supreme in their respective fields
 Introduction of Bill
 Reference to the concerned Standing Committee
 Consideration in the Standing Committee
 Report of the Standing Committee before House
 Consideration of the bill (First Reading)
 Clause by clause Consideration (Second Reading)
 Passing of Bill (Third Reading)
 Transmission of Bill to Other House
 Same Process shall be followed in the Other
House
 If Passed, Bill shall be sent for Presidential
Assent