Law is a set of rules that creates a framework to ensure a peaceful society. It defines and enforces behaviours and, if they are broken, sanctions can be imposed. It also enables people to plan their actions over time, as they can reasonably anticipate the legal consequences of their decisions.

The law serves many purposes, but four main ones are establishing standards, maintaining order, resolving disputes and protecting liberties and rights. Laws can be broadly classified by field, such as contract law (which includes everything from buying a bus ticket to trading options on the derivatives market), labour law (which encompasses tripartite industrial relationships between employer, worker and trade union) or evidence law (which covers which materials are admissible in court for a case to be built).

It is often difficult to provide an exact definition of what law is. There are many different theories and interpretations of law. One popular theory is that law is a set of strong rules made by an authority and which must be obeyed. For example, your parents’ house rules might be described as laws and you must abide by them. A more extreme view is that law is a system of power, where a sovereign makes orders that must be obeyed because they are backed by threats. For example, tyrannical rulers such as the Nazis or Saddam Hussein made bad laws, but they were still legally binding and could be enforced.

A more sophisticated definition of law is that it sets out a set of principles and rules governing the activities of individuals and groups. It defines the rights and responsibilities of people in a given situation, such as how to treat someone who is disabled or what can be expected from an employee who has been sacked.

Another aspect of law is the principle that everyone must be treated fairly, regardless of their social status or wealth. This is sometimes called the rule of law, and it is enshrined in most constitutions.

The law can be further analysed in fields such as public and private law, constitutional law and criminal law. Public law concerns the way a government and its agencies are managed, for example, by setting out the duties of officers or defining their jurisdiction. It includes a variety of other areas, such as employment law, tax law and medical jurisprudence. Private law includes the rules that govern commercial transactions and the ownership of property, such as land or shares. It includes the common law of contracts and civil procedure, as well as the laws of specific jurisdictions. These include the laws of England, which have influenced international law. Other countries have their own unique laws, such as the Japanese law of contract and French civil procedure. The law is constantly changing, and it can be difficult to keep up with new developments. For this reason, it is important to have access to good information and guidance. There are many different sources of this, including the legal journals, websites and books produced by lawyers.