Law - An Overview - Types of Law

Law - Overview of Law - Types of Law

Law in its most general sense and common parlance, is a set of rules and regulations which prescribes certain DOs and Don'ts and imposes certain rights and duties on all the members of the society to conduct the human relationships and govern the society and to make the rule of law prevail.

Types of Law:

1. Procedural Law
2. Substantiative Law
3. National Law
4. International Law
5. Civil Law
6. Criminal Law
7. Constitutional Law
8. Law of Torts

• Procedural Law: A procedural law prescribes the procedures for the enforcement of substantive laws. The Civil Procedure Code and the Criminal Procedure Code are examples of procedural laws.

• Substantive Law: A substantive law determines the rights and obligations of the members of society. The Indian Penal Code, Transfer of Property Act, Indian Registration Act, Information Technology Act, Trademarks Act, Copyrights Act, Geographical Indications Act, Wildlife Act, Indian Forest Act, Hindu Marriage Act, Special Marriage Act, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, the Indian Contract Act are some examples of substantive laws.

• National Law: National law, which regulates the relationship between two or more persons within a nation.

• International Law: International law, which governs the relationship between two and/or amongst more states.

• Civil Law: Civil law is a set of laws dealing with the civil issues/disputes between and/or amongst individuals. The parties in the civil cases are Plaintiff vs Defendant.

• Criminal Law: Criminal law is a set of laws dealing with the crimes against society at large. The parties in the criminal cases are State vs Accused.

• Constitutional Law: Constitutional law is the supreme and fundamental law of the land which outlines the separation of powers among three different organs of the state - legislature, executive and judiciary. It prescribes rules and regulations for the governance of the country, and provides rights and duties to the individuals. 

• Law of Torts: It is a branch of law which has evolved through judicial pronouncements. e.g. Vicarious liability in Donoghue vs Stevenson, Strict liability in Rylands vs Fletcher.