Law is the collective set of rules and regulations that govern human behavior. It is a central aspect of any society. The law determines what is permitted and forbidden, announces rewards and punishments, and sets a standard of conduct for members of a particular society or group. The law shapes politics, economics, history and culture in various ways and serves as a mediator of relations between people. The law reflects a particular social order and is therefore a reflection of a society’s values. The societal implications of the law are often debated, particularly regarding issues such as human rights, property and social justice.
A legal system can be characterized by the type of government it has, how a government exercises its powers and the types of laws that are made. A government’s structure may be parliamentary or presidential, and the nature of its power is determined by whether it has a separation of executive and legislative functions or combines these powers into one executive branch. The legal system can also be influenced by religious beliefs, such as Shari’ah or Jewish law.
The law can be a tool for achieving political goals, such as limiting the power of certain groups or individuals, or it can serve a more utilitarian purpose, such as establishing order and stability in societies. The societal impact of the law is influenced by how well it addresses core issues such as property and human rights, as well as how easily it is accessible to citizens of all backgrounds and social class.
A career in the law is attractive to many young people because it offers prestige, financial security and the possibility of changing the world. Law is a broad field that includes such subjects as administrative law; criminal law; contract law; labour law; maritime law; tort law and tax law.
Some fields of law are more specialized than others. For example, aviation law deals with the laws that regulate commercial and private aircraft. Other areas of law are governed by specific treatises such as the Uniform Code on Contracts. Other specialized fields include intellectual property law, which determines which kinds of inventions can be copyrighted, and family law, which establishes the rights of parents, children and spouses in relation to each other. The law can also be based on the written or unwritten constitution of a country. This determines how a government is structured and operates, including its relationship to the social sciences. Other articles that deal with the law’s relationship to political structures are constitution; ideology; political party; and political system.