Law is a set of rules that a society agrees to follow and enforces to control behavior, establish relationships, manage commerce and governance, and protect individual rights. It permeates all aspects of life — influencing everything from relationships and family to property, government and business. Law also serves social needs, governing the relationship between citizen and state and regulating immigration and nationality; it may be coercive. Its origin is obscure but most scholars believe it is derived from the Old Norse word for order and stability, and its function is to keep people within society under control.
Law includes criminal, civil, international, contract, trust, tort, and property law among its many fields of study. Legal systems vary widely in how they organize and classify their subjects of law. For example, some countries have two major categories: private and public law. Private law covers contracts and property, while public law encompasses criminal, constitutional, and administrative laws.
Law is a complex discipline and the subject of much discussion, debate and research. Oxford Reference offers an extensive collection of trusted law resources with over 34,000 concise definitions and specialist encyclopedic entries, covering the full spectrum of legal topics. It’s an ideal resource for students and researchers in law, criminal justice, international relations, human rights, government and politics. Our content includes expert-authored and peer-reviewed articles, as well as primary source material and a range of multimedia tools to help make the world of law accessible and engaging.