Law is a system of rules created by a state to ensure that people’s relationships are fair and balanced, and that when they break these rules there are mechanisms in place that will see that the offending party is punished. Laws cover a wide range of activities, from regulating air travel to defining ownership of property.

The advantages of a stable, well-functioning legal system are far-reaching within societies. These include: Access to justice that ensures equality and stability, regardless of social class; Reliability of the law as a guide for citizens in day-to-day decision making; and The guarantee that core human rights, procedural and property laws are respected and upheld by a transparent government and judicial process.

While there are numerous schools of legal thought, most agree that a stable, well-functioning law is the foundation of society. The most common schools of thought are natural-law and positive law. Natural-law theorists believe that certain fundamental rights are “a priori” (existing in the mind prior to and independent of experience), while positive law theorists believe that a stable rule of law depends on the consent of the governed, not on some other mystical force.

At a federal level, the United States laws are defined by statutes, which are passed by Congress and signed by the President. In addition, the Constitution gives executive branch agencies the power to create regulations that have the force of law. These are published in the Federal Register and codified into the Code of Federal Regulations. Many lawsuits turn on the interpretation of statutes and regulations, and judicial decisions on such questions carry legal weight through a principle known as stare decisis.