Law[edit]

The Law From Old English lagu (something laid down or fixed) (Harper, Douglas.  "law". Online
Etymology Dictionary.); legal comes from Latin legalis, from lex "law," "statute" (Harper,
Douglas. "legal". Online Etymology Dictionary.) is a system of rules usually enforced through a set of
institutions. The purpose of law is to provide an objective set of rules for governing conduct and
maintaining order in a society.
The oldest known codified law is the Code of Hammurabi, dating back to about 1754 BC. The preface
directly credits the laws to the Code of Hammurabi of Ur. In different parts of the world, law could be
established by philosophers or religion. In the modern world, laws are typically created and enforced by
governments. These codified laws may coexist with or contradict other forms of social control, such as
religious proscriptions, professional rules and ethics, or the cultural mores and customs of a society.
Within the realm of codified law, there are generally two forms of law that the courts are concerned
with. Civil laws are rules and regulations which govern transactions and grievances between individual
citizens. Criminal law is concerned with actions which are dangerous or harmful to society as a whole, in
which prosecution is pursued not by an individual but rather by the state. The purpose of criminal law is to
provide the specific definition of what constitutes a crime and to prescribe punishments for committing
such a crime. No criminal law can be valid unless it includes both of these factors. The subject of criminal
justice is, of course, primarily concerned with the enforcement of criminal law.

Law[edit]
The Law From Old English lagu (something laid down or fixed) (Harper, Douglas.  "law". Online
Etymology Dictionary.); legal comes from Latin legalis, from lex "law," "statute" (Harper,
Douglas. "legal". Online Etymology Dictionary.) is a system of rules usually enforced through a set of
institutions. The purpose of law is to provide an objective set of rules for governing conduct and
maintaining order in a society.
The oldest known codified law is the Code of Hammurabi, dating back to about 1754 BC. The preface
directly credits the laws to the Code of Hammurabi of Ur. In different parts of the world, law could be
established by philosophers or religion. In the modern world, laws are typically created and enforced by
governments. These codified laws may coexist with or contradict other forms of social control, such as
religious proscriptions, professional rules and ethics, or the cultural mores and customs of a society.
Within the realm of codified law, there are generally two forms of law that the courts are concerned
with. Civil laws are rules and regulations which govern transactions and grievances between individual
citizens. Criminal law is concerned with actions which are dangerous or harmful to society as a whole, in
which prosecution is pursued not by an individual but rather by the state. The purpose of criminal law is to
provide the specific definition of what constitutes a crime and to prescribe punishments for committing
such a crime. No criminal law can be valid unless it includes both of these factors. The subject of criminal
justice is, of course, primarily concerned with the enforcement of criminal law.