1. CHAPTER TWO
SOURCES OF THE LAW
MUSOLINO
SUNY CRIMINAL & BUSINESS LAW

2. Learning Objectives Enumerate the objectives of the law.
Clarify the operation of the law as a complex adaptive system.
Outline the content of the U.S. Constitution.
Explain the role of statutory law in the legal system.
Distinguish between the principle of preemption and the doctrine of devolution.

3. Learning Objectives
Defend the need to set up a system of uniform state laws.
State the role of common law in the legal system.
Describe how the principle of stare decisis provides stability to our legal system.
Differentiate between statutory interpretation and judicial review.
Account for the legislature’s need to establish administrative agencies.

4. The Law as a Balancing Act
One person’s rights are enforced while another’s are not
Because the law is made by people, it is not perfect
Legislators and judges bring their own personal prejudices and biases into the process
Cross-Cultural Notes
Legal systems in many Latin American countries have been shaped by the colonial history of the region. Since gaining independence,
Brazil, Mexico, Venezuela, and Argentina, for example, have each retained a strong centralized government that is molded
after colonial rule. Claiming to be democratic, these governments, like their colonial predecessors, often disregard or change the
law when it becomes inconvenient.

5. Question?
What is a network of interacting conditions that reinforce one another?
Closed system
Complex adaptive system
Simple adaptive system
Open system
The correct answer is “B” – complex adaptive system. See next slide.

6. The Law as a Complex Adaptive System
a network of interacting conditions that reinforce one another while at the same time adjusting to changes from agents both outside and inside the system.

7. Attributes of Complex Adaptive Systems
Operates as the result of the interaction of a variety of actors within the system itself
There is no central controlling actor
Multiple levels of organization exist within the network
The more experienced a complex adaptive system becomes, the more change it undergoes

8. Attributes of Complex Adaptive Systems
As a part of this process, a complex adaptive system can infer the direction of future events and often adjust to those changing events
Within each complex adaptive system, certain levels of influence, called embedded niches, exist, which permit individuals inhabiting those niches to exercise a certain degree of limited power

9. Constitutional Law Constitution Constitutional law
basic law of a nation or state
Constitutional law
body of law that makes up a constitution and its interpretation
Background Information
Under the Articles of Confederation, the official name of the country was the
United States of America.

10. Constitutional Law Articles of Confederation
created to hold together a fragile coalition of states, each of which was determined to maintain its own independent existence
primary weakness was that Confederation Congress could not impose taxes or tariffs
Background Information
Article XI of the Articles of Confederation provided for the direct admission of Canada to the confederation. Congress
retained control over the admission of any other colony by requiring a super majority vote of nine states.

11. Principles of the U.S. Constitution
Separation of national powers among three distinct branches of government
System of checks and balances that allows each branch to oversee the operation of the other two branches
Further Reading A very practical work on the U.S. Constitution is The Constitution of the United States
with the Declaration of Independence and the Articles of Confederation by R. B. Bernstein (New York:
Barnes and Noble, 2002). Another book that discusses such concepts as the separation of powers in
its original form is The Second Treatise of Government by John Locke (Mineola, NY: Dover 2002).

12. Question?
What part of the Constitution changes provisions in the original articles?
Bill of Rites
Change policy
Amendments
Articles
The correct answer is “C” – amendments. See next slide.

13. Structure of the U.S. Constitution
Articles
establish the organization of the national government
Amendments
change provisions in the original articles
add ideas that the framers did not include in those articles

14. Articles of the U.S. Constitution

15. The Question of Democracy
Structure of the Constitution establishes a republic
The difference between a democracy and a republic is that in a democracy, the people have direct control over the government, whereas in a republic, the people elect delegates to represent them.

16. State Constitutions
Each state in the union adopts its own constitution
A state constitution establishes the state’s government
It sets down principles to guide the state government in making state laws and conducting state business
State Variations California’s constitution has been amended over 350 times. The constitution of each
state may be reviewed at
Nebraska is the only state with a unicameral (one-house) legislature. Other states are
considering changing to a unicameral system. A citizen’s group in Minnesota is
advocating that the state adopt a unicameral legislature to be more open, responsive,
accountable, and effective.

17. The Principle of Supremacy
A basic principle of constitutional law is that the U.S. Constitution is the supreme law of the land
All other laws must be in line with constitutional principles

18. The Principle of Preemption
the process by which the courts decide that a federal statute must take precedence over a state statute.
The preemption of a state statute can occur
in three situations. First, Congress can be very clear about its intent and explicitly state
that the federal statute preempts any state statute that covers the same issues. If that is the
case, then all that remains for the courts is to determine which statutes are covered by the
preemption clause. Second, state statutes can be preempted by federal statutes when they
conflict with the objectives of federal legislation. Third, the courts will preempt a state
statute that has entered an area of the law that is traditionally an area that the federal government
handles, such as foreign affairs or banking.

19. The Doctrine of Devolution
occurs when the courts redefine a right and shift the obligation to enforce that right from an upper level authority to a lower one

20. Statutory Law Statutes
Laws passed by a legislature
At the federal level, statutes are the laws made by Congress and signed by the president
At the state level, statutes are enacted by state legislatures

21. Codes and Titles Code Titles
a compilation of all the statutes of a particular state or the federal government
Titles
groupings of statutes that deal with a particular area of the law
The word code comes from the Latin codex, referring to the trunk of a tree. In ancient times,
laws were carved into wooden tablets made from tree trunks.

22. Uniform Laws Statutory law differs from state to state
One solution to the problem of inconsistent statutory law is for all the state legislatures to adopt the same statutes
The National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws (NCCUSL) was founded to write these uniform laws

23. Question?
Which unified set of statutes is designed to govern almost all commercial transactions?
A. Uniform Business Code
B. Commercial Code of Regulations
C. Uniform Commercial Code
D. Unified Business Regulations
The correct answer is “C” – Uniform Commercial Code – UCC. See next slide.

24. The Uniform Commercial Code
Uniform Commercial Code (UCC)
a unified set of statutes designed to govern almost all commercial transactions
helps parties involved in commercial transactions prepare their contracts

25. Electronic Law Statutes
E-commerce
term applied to all electronic transactions
The advent of the Information Age has sparked the need for specific electronic law statutes that address the problems associated with e-commerce

26. Court Decisions
Common law
Interpretation of statutes
Judicial review

27. Common Law Common law Stare decisis (let the decision stand)
the body of previously recorded legal decisions made by the courts in specific cases.
Stare decisis (let the decision stand)
process of relying on these previously recorded legal decisions
Precedents
The previously recorded legal decisions
Background Information
One of medieval common law’s most important contributions to modern times is the concept of
the supremacy of law. Under common law, no ruler or government agency had the authority to overturn
the decisions of the past, thus limiting their powers.
Today, economics and social justice are protected by courts that look to precedent rather than solely to
statutes.

28. Question? Which precedent is a court free to follow or ignore?
Persuasive precedent
Binding precedent
Required precedent
Credible precedent
The correct answer is “A” – persuasive precedent. See next slide.

29. Common Law Binding precedent Persuasive precedent
precedent that a court must follow.
Persuasive precedent
precedent that a court is free to follow or ignore.
Related Cases The Supreme Court in Roe v. Wade (93 S. Ct. 705) used previous decisions to find the constitutional right to
privacy involving the right to abortions. First the Court decided a person has a right to choose whom to marry, then it
ruled on a person’s right to birth control, and then a person’s right to procreate.
From this precedent, the Court found the right to privacy.

30. Statutory Interpretation
the process by which the courts analyze those aspects of a statute that are unclear or ambiguous or that were not anticipated at the time the legislature passed the statute

31. Question?
What is the process of determining the constitutionality of various legislative statutes, administrative regulations, or executive actions?
A. Official review
B. Legal review
C. Judicial assessment
D. Judicial review
The correct answer is “D” – judicial review. See next slide.

32. Judicial Review Judicial review
the process of determining the constitutionality of various legislative statutes, administrative regulations, or executive actions

33. Administrative Agencies
create rules, regulate and supervise, and render decisions that have the force of law
Administrative law
agencies’ decrees and decisions

34. Question?
What publication produces a daily compilation of new regulations issued by federal agencies?
Federal Register
Washington Post
Federal Post
Register of Federal Rules and Regulations
The correct answer is “A” – Federal Register. See next slide.

35. The Federal Register and the Code of Federal Regulations
a publication that produces a daily compilation of new regulations issued by federal administrative agencies