September 27th, 2008
Often much is made in the way of observing the laws of the land. But have you ever wondered what exactly is "law," and where exactly does it comes from? It is ironic that the intricacies of such a powerful force in our society is known by so few people. Hundreds upon hundreds of laws are passed each year at the federal and state levels, allegedly due to the increase in the population and complexity of society. In regards to the complexity of organizing and compiling the current laws of Illinois, the Legislative Reference Bureau states:
"The 1874 Revised Statues were the last official organization of the statutes prior to ILCS taking effect on January 1, 1993. That is a span of 119 years, from Presidents Grant through Bush and Governors Beveridge through Edgar. The world has changed more in those 119 years than probably any other period of history; and, as a consequence, the number and mass of statutory laws have exploded. The number of Acts has increased from 250 to approximately 2,000, the number of printed volumes from one (printed one column per page) to 6 (printed two columns per page) in the 1991 edition of the Revised Statutes."
I think all would agree that when the gap between the complexity and the level of understanding of a subject increases, so too does the potential for misinterpretation of that subject increase. Also, because the laws are administered by only a few individuals, who presumably understand the subject, the potential for those individuals to defraud the individuals who do not understand the subject is equally as great. Thus, it is the attempt of this writing to narrow the gap of understanding of the law between those who administer it, and those who are subject to their obedience.
Constitution is the Source of All Law
The Constitution of the United States is the Supreme Law of the Land. For the areas of regulation untouched by the federal constitution is the constitution of the several States. Unlike the laws of the United States, and those of the several States, the constitutions are very short documents and are easy to comprehend. They are established by the people of the states, and all laws that stem from them must be harmonious with them to be binding on the people-at-large.
Unlike the constitutions, the laws of the land are written by lawyers. Lawyers are those well versed in the subject of law, and represent a subset of the population-at-large. Unfortunately when lawyers write laws, they are not written for the layman's understanding, but expressed in the language of the lawyers. In a perfect society where everyone is honest, this is not a problem as the only need for understanding the law would come from a violation of the federal or state constitution, which are understood by the layman. But with a complex society, you get complex people who will attempt to steal from you your life, liberty, and property.
Law Dictionaries and Statute Glossaries
In the United States, the language spoken by the mass of the people is English. Dictionaries attempt to provide meaning of the words used in the everyday vernacular of the people. As mentioned earlier, lawyers have a vernacular of their own, and thus law dictionaries have been created for those unfamiliar with the language. Common citizens when dealing with the law must consult these dictionaries or they will be lost in a web of legalese. Legislators are aware of this fact as well, and in writing laws often place a glossary section in the text to assist the layman with its interpretation. Accordingly, words which mean one thing in the common language of the people can mean something totally different in the language of a law or statute. It is of extreme importance to know that constitutions are written in the language of the common people of the land, and laws and statutes, which are written in the language of the lawyers, are subordinate to them.
Basic Terminology
Because we are first concerned with meanings that represent the community at large, we will look up various definitions in a general dictionary of the English language, specifically Merriam Webster Online.
law - 1 a (1): a binding custom or practice of a community : a rule of conduct or action prescribed or formally recognized as binding or enforced by a controlling authority (2): the whole body of such customs, practices, or rules (3): common law
From the above definition, we see that the law is merely the custom of the people, only that it is "binding" and "formal." We see here that the law should match our "customs," i.e., our "constitutions."
custom - 1 a: a usage or practice common to many or to a particular place or class or habitual with an individual b: long-established practice considered as unwritten law c: repeated practice d: the whole body of usages, practices, or conventions that regulate social life
Notice that the word common is used in both the definitions of law, and custom. Just for good measure, let's define common.
common - 1 a: of or relating to a community at large : public
So it can be seen that the word common deals with the community as a whole. It follows then that the laws relating to the community-at-large, or the public, should be common laws. The customs of the people are the "unwritten law" of the land, however the constitutions are the outline for the written laws.
constitution - 1: an established law or custom : ordinance 2 a: the physical makeup of the individual especially with respect to the health, strength, and appearance of the body (a hearty constitution) b: the structure, composition, physical makeup, or nature of something
So we can see that from the constitutions stem the various laws of the land. It should be noted however, that although the constitutions are documents dealing with common law, not all laws stemming from them pertain to common law principles. One may be tempted to suggest that any law other than a common law is unconstitutional, but such a suggestion would be flawed; as will be explained below.
continue to Part 2
No comments:
Post a Comment