Law is a set of rules that governs the behavior of people and sets forth the consequences when those rules are broken. It includes not only the core human, procedural and property rights that are enshrined in every country’s constitution but also the mechanisms that ensure those rights are enforced fairly and transparently (e.g., a free and independent press and checks on the power of government).
The precise definition of law is a matter of ongoing debate. One approach involves distinguishing different philosophies of law (schools of legal thought) and identifying the various aims that a functioning legal system may serve:
In modern Western society, laws can be made by a group legislature, resulting in statutes; by the executive through decrees and regulations; or by judges, in common law jurisdictions, where judicial decisions are binding on future courts based on a principle called stare decisis. Private individuals can also create legally binding contracts that are often enforceable under the doctrine of contract law.
Some laws are explicitly derived from religious precepts, such as the Jewish Halakha or Islamic Sharia; and some are derived through further human elaboration, such as interpretation, Qiyas, Ijma or precedent. Other laws are based on empirical observations, such as the principles of traffic safety or medical jurisprudence. The scope of law extends to the regulation of all types of business and economic transactions, such as contracts, criminal law and labour law; the protection of the environment; and the study of evidence and court proceedings.