How we define law depends on how we look at its purposes or functions. A basic purpose of law in our society is to maintain order and to resolve disputes. In this connection we must bear in mind that law is not simply a set of rules of conduct. It is also the means to impose responsibility and to enforce social justice. Law has also been defined as a command from a superior to an inferior. The tax law fits in well with this concept of law.
Laws can be classified in many ways too. Laws are sometimes referred to as substantive or procedural. Substantive law defines rights, and procedural law establishes the procedures by which rights are protected and enforced.
Law is also frequently classified into areas of public and private law. Public law includes laws that affect the public generally. It can be further divided into constitutional law, administrative law and criminal law. Private law deals with the relationships between individuals in an organized society. It covers contracts, torts and property, each of which can be subdivided into several aspects.
The phrase "sources of law" is used here to describe methods and procedures by which law is created and developed. American law comes from four basic sources: constitutions, legislation, judicial decisions, and administrative rules and regulations.
Judicial decisions as part of law is a unique characteristic of American law. This concept of decided cases as a source of law is often referred to as the common law system, which must be contrasted with the civil law system developed in continental Europe. The civil law countries have codified their law so that the main source of law in those countries is to be found in the statutes rather than in the cases. Under the common law system, statutes as well as cases are sources of law.
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