Law
Law is the branch of knowledge dealing with the rules of conduct that are established and enforced by a state authority and which are usually organized into a coherent legal system. This branch of knowledge can be distinguished from the divine law of the Jewish or Mosaic code, which is attributed to God, and natural law, which is purported to be inherent in the natural order. (See: Rule of law.) Moreover, man-made laws can be distinguished from physical laws, i.e., scientific generalizations based on empirical observations which most scientists would agree upon as valid assertions about natural phenomena. The collective body of laws relating to one subject or emanating from one source are usually identified by specific reference. (E.g., Roman law, Common law, Criminal law.)
There are several distinct legal traditions, and each jurisdiction has its own set of laws and its own legal system. However, these laws and legal systems are often quite similar, arising from similar values and similar social, economic and political conditions. They typically differ less in their substantive content than in their jargon and procedures. One of the fundamental similarities across different legal systems is that, to be of general approval and observation, a law has to appear to be public, effective, and legitimate, in the sense that it has to be available to the knowledge of the citizen in common places or means, it needs to contain instruments to grant its application, and it has to be issued under given formal procedures from a recognized authority.
A particular society or community adopts a specific set of laws to regulate the behavior of its own members, to order life in its political territory, to grant or acknowledge the rights and privileges of its citizens and other people who may come under the jurisdiction of its courts, and to resolve disputes. Moreover, the several different levels of government each produce their own laws, though the extent to which law is centralized varies. Thus, at any one place there can be conflicting laws in force at the local, regional, state, national, or international levels. (See: Conflicts of laws.)
Legal systems and traditions
Canon law -- Civil law -- Common law -- Consuetudinary law --European community law -- International law -- Roman law -- Socialist law
Legal subject areas
Administrative law -- Admiralty-- Appellate review -- Civil law -- Civil procedure -- Civil rights -- Commercial law -- Constitutional law -- Contracts -- Corporations law -- Criminal law -- Criminal procedure -- Environmental law -- Evidence -- Family law -- Human rights -- Immigration -- Intellectual property -- Jurisprudence -- Labor law -- Land use -- Practice of law -- Private law -- Procedural law -- Property law -- Tax law -- Torts
Law of particular countries
- United Kingdom:
- United States:
Subjects Auxillary to Law
Philosophy of law -- Comparative law -- Legal history -- Law and literature -- dispute resolution (aka, alternative dispute resolution)
Other (To be arranged into the above categories)
- fraud
- good faith (bona fide)
- immunity
- inquest
- laches
- legal aspects of transsexualism
- legal technicality
- Lettre de cachet
- notitia criminis
- qui tam
- senatusconsultus
- statute of limitations
- statute
- statutory law
- time constraints
- trial de novo
- Unidroit
- usucaption
- usufruct
- voluntas necandi
- will
- with prejudice
Legal books:
see also Crime
Not quite law: Law of nature -- Murphy's law -- Finagle's law -- Hanlon's Razor -- Sturgeon's law -- Parkinson's law -- Occam's razor
What are our priorities for writing in this area? To help develop a list of the most basic topics in Law, please see Law basic topics.