Vocabulary: Primary and Secondary Sources of Law

Primary and Secondary Sources of Law

• A primary source of law is a document that establishes the law on a particular issue, such as a constitution, statute, administrative rule, or court decision.
• A secondary source of law summarizes and clarifies primary sources, including legal encyclopedias, compilations, official comments to statutes, treatises, and articles in law reviews and journals.

Constitutional Law

• Deals with the fundamental principles by which the government exercises its authority, as expressed in constitutions.
• A law in violation of the constitution will be declared unconstitutional and not enforced if challenged.
• Each state in the union has its own constitution.

Statutory Law

• Enacted by legislative bodies, such as statutes passed by Congress or state legislatures.
• When a statute is passed, it is included in the federal code of laws or the relevant state code of laws.

Citations, Ordinances, and Uniform Laws

• A citation is a reference to a publication in which a legal authority, such as a statute or court decision, can be found.
• Ordinances are regulations passed by municipal or county governing units to deal with matters not covered by federal or state law.
• Uniform laws are model laws developed by the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws for states to consider enacting into statute.

Administrative Law

• Consists of the rules, orders, and decisions of administrative agencies.
• Administrative agencies are federal, state, or local government agencies established to perform a specific function.
• Examples of administrative agencies include executive agencies and independent regulatory agencies.

Administrative Agencies

• Executive agencies are subject to the authority of the president, who appoints and removes officers.
• Independent regulatory agencies have fixed terms for officers, and the president cannot remove them without just cause.
• Enabling legislation specifies the name, composition, purpose, and powers of the agency being created.

Administrative Process

• Adjudicate: to render a judicial decision in a trial-like proceeding in which an administrative law judge hears and resolves disputes involving an administrative agency's regulations.
• Administrative process involves rulemaking, enforcement, and adjudication.

Laws and Rules

• Legislative rules are administrative agency rules that carry the same weight as congressionally enacted statutes, and are legally binding on all businesses.
• Interpretive rules are not legally binding, but indicate how an agency plans to interpret and enforce its statutory authority.

Case Law and Common Law

• Case law is the rules of law announced in court decisions, interpreting statutes, regulations, constitutional provisions, and other case law.
• Common law is the body of law developed from custom or judicial decisions in English and US courts, not attributable to a legislature.
• Precedent: a court decision that furnishes an example or authority for deciding subsequent cases involving identical or similar facts.
• Stare decisis: a common law doctrine under which judges are obligated to follow the precedents established in prior decisions.
• Binding authority: any source of law that a court must follow when deciding a case.