Law is the set of customs, practices and rules that govern human conduct and regulate society. Law can be created or enforced by a number of means, including social norms, societal pressures, religion, morality and a sense of fairness, and legal contracts and precedent. It can be a matter of choice between individuals or dictated by governments, with the precise definition of law a subject of long-running debate. Law influences politics, economics, history and culture in many ways and also serves to mediate relations between individuals and groups of people.
Generally, laws are made and enforced by government agencies, which have the power to coerce behavior through the threat of violence or other punishment. Governments may make or enforce laws through a group legislature, resulting in statutes; by the executive branch through decrees and regulations; or by judicial decisions, which become case law (i.e., the precedent that guides future legal decisions). Private individuals can also create legally binding contracts, which are enforceable in court as civil law.
Law can serve a variety of different purposes in a nation, including keeping the peace and maintaining the status quo; preserving individual rights; protecting minorities from majorities; and fostering social justice. Some legal systems serve these purposes better than others. For example, an authoritarian regime that enforces its laws may keep the peace, but it might also oppress its own citizens or invade neighboring nations, as is the case in Burma under the rule of tyrannical military leader Than Shwe.
In addition to regulating human conduct, laws can establish property rights and boundaries. Property laws, for example, define a person’s rights and duties toward tangible property (such as land or buildings) and intangible property (like money or computer data). Tort law protects persons when they are harmed by the acts of others, whether by a car accident, defamation or sexual harassment. The most important function of law, though, is to ensure that a person can reasonably anticipate the legal consequences of his or her actions. This is called the “Rule of Law.” A nation’s laws must be reasonably stable, so that a person can plan his or her affairs over time with confidence that he or she will not run afoul of the law.