(PDF) Concepts of Law - Assignment

D/LLB/20/0027
H.J.M.P.N. Jayasinghe
Term “law “actually doesn’t have a definite meaning which means it is very hard to
define Law
INTAKE 37 - SEMESTER I
Explain what is meant by the term 'Law' and why the 'Law' is required in a society.
Brief introduction to Law
Origin of the term “law”
❖ Latin words for law, Lex and legis, are a little similar to law but “law” doesn’t seem
to originate from Latin. So according to what etymologists have agreed upon: law
comes from the Old Norse lag, which evolved into the Old English lagu. Middle
English: lawe. And then as law. In Old English, the words æ and gesetnes had the
same meaning as law, but they became obsolete.1
“The law is multifaceted, and arguably it has been in flux over the years. In the current age of
globalization and Europeanization, it is changing at high speed. It is therefore not possible to
give a short definition of law from the outset.”2
Term “Law” could be explained from different perspectives. society sees laws as Justice,
Morality, and Reason. To legislation, law means acts, rules, regulations, and order. For
judges’ laws are rules and orders of court and judgments. It is an unavoidable fact that “law”
is a vast and expanded subject.
1 https://english-ingles.com/etymology-of-law/ 2 J. Hage and B. Akkermans (eds.), Introduction to Law, DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-06910-4_1, # Springer
International Publishing Switzerland 2014

D/LLB/20/0027
H.J.M.P.N. Jayasinghe
” Law can be seen as the ‘glue’ that holds the fabric of society together. The law protects us
from complete social disorder and anarchy”3
As we have learned law can be simply depicted as the principles and regulations
established in a community by some higher authority(government) and applicable to its
people.
Laws are created, applied, and enforced by the authorities of the state.
Whether you may like it or not you have to obey to the rules implemented on people by the
government. no one can opt-out from the law. It spreads throughout the society ...
Difference between a rule and a law
what we call “a law” is a legal norm that organizes, manages, and controls social life
through the will of the public. But “rules” are applied to a certain institution and it is limited
to certain no of people. Rules of churches, social organizations, and business belong to this
category...you will be discarded from the membership of an organization as the maximum
punishment for breaking a rule, but breaking a law is punishable, and maximum punishment
will be life imprisonment or death.
Definitions about law
Now and then, many philosophers have expressed their opinions about the law.
Justinian has reduced the principles of law to three; 1st, that we should live honestly; 2ndly,
that we should hurt nobody; and 3rdly, that we should give everyone his due."4
Some modern opinions are as follows,
• Sir William Blackstone defined law as,
“it signifies a rule of action and is applied indiscriminately to all kinds of action whether
animate or inanimate or rational or irrational Thus we say, the laws of motion, of gravitation,
of optics, or mechanics, as well as the laws of nature and of nations. And it is that rule of
action, which is prescribed by some superior, and which the inferior is bound to obey... 5
3 Learning leagal rules,8th ed, James Holland and Julian Webb, page3 4 http://www.duhaime.org/LegalDictionary/L/Law.aspx
5Commentaries on the Laws of England (1765-1769) Sir William Blackstone

D/LLB/20/0027
H.J.M.P.N. Jayasinghe
• Salmond defines law as” the body of principles recognized and applied by the state in
the administration of justice”.6
“Some of the philosophers’ answers, reduced to their most basic form, are:
• law is a system of rules laid down by a body or person with the power and authority
to make law;
• law is what legislators, judges, and lawyers ‘do’;
• law is a tool of oppression used by the ruling class to advance its own interests;
• law is a system of rules grounded on fundamental principles of morality. ” 7
“law” is a set of rules and regulations imposed by the government for the betterment of the
society and law is required by the society.
Therefore, we can say that law is a man-made body of rules which is a normative character
which tells you what to do and don’t... Law is territorial. And through agreements it could be
universal. And it governs almost every aspect of the people.
We have to remember that laws exist for a good reason and to obey them. Even though law
cannot control the inside world nor the mindset of the humans they can’t escape from the law,
from your birth to death it will follow you, from cradle to cemetery, may be after that too.
Law and morality
Moral values are created based on what people see as good or bad and fair or unfair. Which
is exactly why it is different from law. Something morally wrong could be legal by law. Vice
versa is the same. Law and morality follow the same path sometimes but not always.
6 Ranajit Bhakta Pradhananga Kishor Silwal, A General Outline of Jurisprudence, Ratna Pustak Bhandar, p2
7 Learning leagal rules,8th ed, James Holland and Julian Webb