A List of the Different Types of Law
Everybody needs to know the laws that govern the country. It’s not only necessary but it is also essential. Knowing the laws will enable you to handle issues that might occur to you- those that require legal interventions. Laws have been put in place to govern the land and to protect its citizens against the lawbreakers. Laws protect your rights and when your rights have been breached, you have the right to sue the offender. But if you don’t know the laws, it simply means you are not aware of your rights and whenever they have been breached, your ignorance to the laws will enable the law breaker get away with the wrong he has committed against you.
Well, there are a various types of laws and therefore attorneys are also different. Just like in the field of medicine, you can’t go for a general physician whenever you have a skin problem. You need to go see a skin specialist- a Dermatologist. And this is so to the attorneys. There are different types of attorneys who have specialized in different laws. So it is therefore necessary for you to understand the different types of laws of US for you to be sure of what type attorney you will go for whenever you have been caught with a legal crisis. Laws have two major divisions;
Procedural law – follows court procedures
Substantive law – governs the violations of rights and duties.
Substantive law has an enormous definition and also has a number of sub-laws unlike procedural law. Here are just a few of the sub-types of substantive law.
- Criminal Law – This law governs public wrong and it provides for various forms of punishment. Each wrong has a different form of punishment; it depends with the extent of damage, age of the offender, obviously the type of wrong and circumstances under which the wrong was committed. Punishment for murder will be different from that of rape, arson, theft and what have you.
- Employment Law – This law governs employer/employee relationships. Whenever you have a problem with your employer say delay in salaries, unfair demotion and what have you. Know that you have a right to seek for a legal justice through the court.
- Immigration Law – This law determines whether an individual is a US alien, has the rights, duties and obligations of US aliens. It helps to determine whether an alien can a US naturalized citizen by law.
- Corporate Law – Corporations are legal entities that are created under the law of State Corporation. For this matter, corporations are governed by state laws. When creating, organizing and dissolution of corporations, a Corporation Act needs to be adhered to.
- Consumer Rights – These are laws that protect consumers. Whenever there is a false advertisement, unhealthy products, and other business malpractices, you as a consumer have a right to raise these complaints and the law will step in to mediate on your behalf.
- Civil Rights – This law governs human conduct and it also mediates whenever there is a dispute between private parties.
- Bankruptcy Law – When an individual or a company files a case for a relief of debt, then this is referred to as Bankruptcy. In the US, there are courts that deal with Bankruptcy cases and there are lawyers who have specialized in this field. Whenever you need a fresh start for your burdensome debts, you can always file for a bankruptcy ruling.
- Admiralty Law – It is also known as Maritime Law. It covers vessels, passenger liabilities, and cargo disputes, fishing regulations, international trade, injuries that have taken place at the docks and in the vessels, oil pollutions and what have you.
- Aviation Law – This is a law put in place by the US government to enhance the safety of its air traffic. It governs aircraft operations and aircraft and maintenance as well.
- Tort Law – This law governs any civil action that might occur between two individual parties. Whenever there is a wrongful act or a breach of contract between individuals say interference with a person’s privacy, law of torts will come in handy.
- Contract Law – This law governs establishments of agreements. When any of these agreements are ignored, it means that the law of contract has been breached and you have a right to sue for breach of contact.
These are just a few examples of the laws of US. There is the Constitutional Law which is based on the US constitution, Administrative Law which is a body of rules and regulations put in place by administrative bodies, Statutory Laws, International Law, and Family Law that governs family related issues such as marriage, divorce, death, separation, child custody and child adoption. There is also Common Law that deals with the general aspects of human life.
It’s good to understand the various types of laws not only to protect yourself from the law breakers but also to protect yourself from breaking the Law and getting yourself in trouble.
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