Law is the system of rules a country or community recognizes as regulating behavior, often enforced by penalties. It permeates every aspect of human life, influencing relationships, governance, commerce and individual rights. Its varied fields and evolving nature underscore its importance in human civilization.
Law is difficult to define, and there are many different ideas about what it is. A common feature is the idea that laws are constraints on human behavior and that there is a need for a central authority to create, regulate, and enforce these constraints. The principle that everyone, including those in power in the government, is subject to a publicly disclosed legal code and process is also an important element of this concept. Max Weber reshaped thinking about the extension of state power, and modern military, police and bureaucratic powers over ordinary citizens’ daily lives pose special problems that earlier writers such as Locke and Montesquieu could not have foreseen.
The most basic role of law is to keep the peace, maintain order and the status quo, protect people’s liberties and rights, and provide for social change in an ordered way. The extent to which a nation’s government is able to serve these basic functions depends on political power. This varies widely between nations; unstable or authoritarian governments can fail to serve any or all of these roles. For more details about the law and its relationship to political systems, see constitution; ideology; political party; and politics.