OUR LAWS

Stages in the Growth of Law: 1. Individuals take revenge for wrongs done to them. 2. Awards of money or goods are substituted for revenge. 3. Court systems are formed. 4. A central authority figure intervenes to prevent and punish wrongs.

 Laws should be predictable and flexible.  The best system of laws always gradually evolves towards a form that is most appropriate to the current standards of the people.  Common law usually is pronounced by judges who use it to settle people’s disputes.

 Only one state in the United States— Louisiana—has law based on a civil law system.  The legal system used in the other 49 states is based on the English common law.

 There are three levels of government– federal, state, and local.  The laws at each level consist mainly of constitutions, statues, administrative regulations, and case law.

 Criminal v. Civil Laws  Procedural v. Substantive Laws  Business Law