The sources of our laws

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EARLIEST LAWS. From the definition of law, you can guess that every group of people around the world has had laws to live by. In early times, these laws were passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth.

With the advent of writing, it was possible to list all the laws of a society together. These lists of laws are known as codes. One of the earliest known written codes was the Code of Hammurabi. Hammurabi was the Babylonian king who had the code compiled about 4,000 years ago.

Other early rules for living came from religious sources. For example, many of the actions we are told to take or not to take come from the Bible. The Bible tells people not to kill or steal. Today, we also believe that these actions are against the law.

ROMAN LAW. All legal systems owe a debt to the Romans. The Romans had the most highly organized legal system in the ancient world. As early as 450 B.C., the Romans were assembling their laws into codes.

In the sixth century, Emperor Justinian I was responsible for having the complex system of Roman laws listed in what became known as the Justinian Code. This code listed rules covering almost every aspect of human life, much as our laws do today.

Romans also had law enforcement officers and courts where the accused were tried. In fact, the Romans often are credited with making a science of the law. Even our word for the science of law, jurisprudence, comes from the Romans.

BRITISH LAW. Hundreds of years ago, English kings and queens could make laws, enforce them, and settle disputes in any way they chose. But, in 1215, this claim to absolute rule was challenged. In that year, you will remember, King John was forced to sign the Magna Carta. The Magna Carta established the idea that even a king or queen must obey the law. The document also introduced the idea of a right to a trial by jury. Later, England’s juries began to judge the facts after hearing evidence in a case. We still use this kind of trial today.

From the British also came laws of habeas corpus. As you know, habeas corpus means that people being held must be brought before a court to make sure that due process is being followed. This protects people from being illegally imprisoned.

One other British contribution to the American legal system is, perhaps, the most important. This is the system of common law. Common law is that body of law that is based on court decisions, rather than on a legal code. Common law developed over many years of British history. When a judge decided a case, the decision was used as a precedent on which to base other decisions in similar cases. The laws that resulted were called common laws. This was because the laws were used throughout the land.

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