Great Britain is a common law country where the justice system depends heavily on custom and precedent. In contrast, France is a civil law country where the legal system is based entirely on a body of written laws. A system of administrative justice was established by Napoleon I in the Code Napoléon, later adopted by other countries as well. Today there are 55 codes (collections of laws, decrees and circulars) that regulate all branches of French law. Among these we remember the Code Civil, the Code Pénal and the Code Fiscal. In France there are actually two judicial systems: administrative and judicial. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The administrative system is responsible for resolving legal cases between the government and the individual. This guarantees French citizens exceptional legal protection. The appeal is brought to the 22nd Tribunaux de Premiére Instance and an appeal can be brought to the Conseil d'Etat (Council of State). This is one of the most prestigious bodies in France. One of its tasks is to advise the government on the conformity of proposed legislation with the existing body of law. The judiciary runs parallel to the administrative system and is responsible for civil and criminal cases. Criminal courts include the Tribunaux Correctionels (correction courts), the Tribunaux de Police (police courts) and the Cours d'Assises (assize courts), which try crimes. Appeals are referred to one of the 28 Cours d'Appel (Courts of Appeal). All court decisions are subject to possible annulment by the Supreme Court of Appeal (the Cour de Cassation). All judges in France are career professionals who have to pass a very competitive exam. In criminal courts the judge has a more active role in the case than in Britain and conducts most of the questioning of witnesses. A French jury is actually a mixed court in which six lay judges and three professional judges sit. A two-thirds majority of this "jury" can convict. In France, the jury of peers (as used in the UK) was abolished in 1941. Over the past five years, more than ever, the French justice system has been at the center of national life, with the socialist government putting an end to the traditional political control of judges which was generally used to thwart investigations into political corruption. The result has been a surprising number of investigations, but few actual trials, of the main right-wing political elite, with most attention focused on President Chirac himself, who faces a series of major unanswered allegations of corruption and great fraud dating back to his time. as mayor of Paris. The new right-wing Raffarin government was quick to introduce a series of tough new measures to strengthen various police forces and reduce public disorder crimes ranging from mafia-type organized violent crime, juvenile delinquency, prostitution and even illegal crime. rave parties. The repression of crime is led by two ministers: Nicolas Sarkozy, Minister of the Interior, and Dominique Perben, Minister of Justice (known in France by the ancient title of Garde des Sceaux, or Keeper of the Seals).).