Law and Civics gets Fancy… Chapter 3 and 4 Law and Civics gets Fancy…

Advocacy The Active support of a cause and persuading others to support the same cause Some examples in US History: The end of slavery, temperance, Prohibition, Women’s Suffrage

Lobbying A way to influence the lawmaking process by convincing lawmakers to vote as you want them to

Grassroots Lobbyists As opposed to professional lobbyists, they participate in rallies, protests, and letter writing campaigns .

Initiative A procedure that enables a specified number of voters to propose a law by petition.

Referendum This occurs when a legislative act is referred to voters, instead of government officials, for approval or rejection.

Recall Recall is the process in which voters can remove elected officials from office

Who can Vote? US Citizen: Born or Naturalized 18 years old or older by the date of election Resident of the community you vote in

Participation in US Elections (2004 Presidential Election) 72% of people of legal voting status registered to vote in this election. 64% of these registered voters actually voted Therefore only 46% of people of legal voting status voted in this presidential election.

Campaign Finance Issues People of low to mid income cannot raise enough huge money to compete against many candidates Special interest groups receive favors for large cash donations Elected officials spend too much time raising campaign funds

Campaign Finance Reform Ensure the Public’s “Right to Know” Combat Corruption and undue influence Get more candidates to run Get more citizens to vote

Settling Disputes Among the most common methods for solving disputes out of court are Negotiation Arbitration Mediation

Negotiation Negotiation is the process by which people involved in a dispute discuss their problem and try to reach a solution acceptable to all.

Settlement If negotiations do not work, attorneys sometimes file a settlement, or an agreement before a trial, which save time and money for both sides before going to court.

3 steps/ Phases of negotiation Preparation for the Negotiation All involved parties should have a sincere interest in settling the problem, identify the true issue, consider the perspective of other side, and then try to understand how the interests of the other party

3 steps/ Phases of negotiation 2. Focus on the Negotiation Itself Both Parties focus the identified real issue that needs to be resolved, create a list of solutions as many possible, the two or three most workable solutions should be identified, both parties should be realistic, the main points should be repeated so both parties still understand them.

3 steps/ Phases of negotiation 3. Both Parties Make A Few Final Decisions Both Parties should tell others about how the problem was solved. Everyone involved should be in agreement on what people outside the negotiation will be told.

Arbitration In arbitration, both parties to a dispute agree to have one or more person listen to their arguments and make a decision for them. The Arbitrator is like a judge, and makes a final decision. However, non-binding arbitration means that this decision is advisement, not final.

Arbitration Arbitration is common in contract and labor-management disputes and in some international law cases. Many labor disputes have been decided in arbitration where the Arbitrator decides a fair compromise between both sides.

Mediation Mediation takes place when a third person helps the disputing parties talk about their problem and settle their differences. The mediator in this case, is similar to nonbinding arbitration in that the mediator cannot impose a decision on parties.

Ombudspersons Government agencies, newspapers, and some universities have Omsbudspersons, people who have the power to investigate complaints and then help the parties reach some agreement.