legal duties
What is the difference between the legal and non-legal duties of an individual? Legal duties Legal duties are duties that have become part of the law, either through the ruling of a judge also known as common law duties or the passing of legislation by parliament; known as statutory duties. Duties apply to everyone including lawmakers and they are enforced by the state with the assistance of the courts and police. The state allows individuals to seek compensation through the court if they have suffered because another person has failed to meet a legal obligation. People who fail to meet a legal duty can be punished, these punishments can include being fined, imprisoned or may even be required to do something to ease the suffering of any victim e. ... Legal duties include: Jury duty- all citizens have an obligation to serve on a jury, if they are selected to do so, unless they are able to give a good enough reason and are exempted. ... Common law duties Many duties have developed under the common law. ... Statutory duties Statutory duties are those parliament decides should be, by law, part of the relationship between a certain persons in society. For example, in the context of company law, The Corporations Law 1996 (a statute about the creation and conduct of companies) provides that a director of a particular company has the following duties: The duty to exercise care and diligence The duty to act honestly The duty not to make improper use of information The duty not to make improper use of position. ... The ramifications for a member of nay profession who is found to have breached any of the duties of that profession are severe. Under the Legal Profession Act 1987 (NSW) legal practitioners have a series of duties. Pursuant to the Legal Profession Act, the Bar Rules state a series of rules for in-court advocates, or barristers: Duty to the client- must seek to advance the client’s cause and protect the client’s interest to the best of the barrister’s ability Duty to be honest- a barrister must not deliberately make misleading statements to the court Duty to opponent- a barrister must not knowingly make a false statement to the opponent in relation to the case. ... Breach of Statutory and Common Law Duties In many personal injury cases, an allegation of breach of statutory duty is made at the same time as allegation of common law negligence. ... Non- legal Duties All other duties which are created by the circumstances of a person’s life are referred to as non-legal duties. In contrast to legal duties (which apply to everyone), a person’s non-legal duties may be unique to them, depending on the community they belong to, the religion they follow, their personal concept of morality and the occupation they work in.