Law is a complex set of rules and principles that governs human interaction. It includes a broad range of legal topics such as contracts, criminal, civil, property, and administrative law. Laws are based on a combination of principles, precedent, and common sense.
The main function of Law is to establish standards for behaviour in a society. For example, certain acts, such as causing bodily injury to another person, are illegal because society has determined that it is not acceptable to do so. Other laws, such as tax law, ensure that the people in a country have a fair distribution of social benefits, while others, like criminal laws, provide a formal means of resolving disputes between individuals.
A judicial system is an essential part of Law as it is the only way to have a dispute resolved fairly by someone independent from the parties involved. This is particularly important in cases where a large sum of money is at stake or a person’s liberty is on the line. This is why the judicial system has special processes that protect a litigant’s privacy and maintain a fair trial, such as a closed courtroom and an impartial jury.
In a modern democracy, the laws of a country are set by a legislative body and enforced by a judiciary. The judiciary also interprets the law and makes adjustments to keep up with changes in society, such as new technologies or social attitudes. This is done by the use of case law, or a body of previous court decisions that can be used as precedent for future cases.
Laws are not a single document but an aggregate of individual acts, statutes, ordinances and regulations that make up a legal system. For example, the law of a country is considered to be the body of laws written and enforced in that country, which includes constitutional laws, statutory laws, case law and customary law. Laws are made by Governmental Authorities, which can be either a Government or an organisation. This includes a law or an order made by the Parliament of a nation, or an act, ordinance, regulation, rule, code, reporting requirement, license, permit, authorization, consent, decree, injunction, binding judicial interpretation or other similar rule, issued or entered by a Governmental Authority. In the United States, this definition of a law or statute extends to treaties, executive orders and other binding judicial interpretations. The term law is also used to refer to the practice of law, which involves advising and representing clients in legal matters. The legal profession is generally divided into two categories, those who practise criminal or civil law, and those who specialise in business or corporate law. In addition, there are a number of subfields within the practice of law, including family law, labour law and medical jurisprudence. These subfields are largely dependent on the needs of local societies, and vary from place to place. For example, a family law practitioner in the US may focus on marriage and divorce while in England, they may be more concerned with issues of child adoption and custody.