MEANING AND

CLASSIFICATION OF LAW,
FUNCTION OF LAW, SOURCES
OF LAW
COURT MANAGEMENT
INTRODUCTION:
The term ‘law’ denotes different kinds of rules and principles. Law
is an instrument which regulates human conduct or behavior.
Law means Statutes, Acts, Rules, Regulations, Orders and
Ordinances from point of view of legislature.
Law means Rules of court, Decrees, Judgment, Orders of courts,
and Injunctions from the point of view of Judges. Therefore, Law
is a broader term which includes Acts, Statutes, Rules,
Regulations, Orders, Ordinances, Justice, Morality, Reason,
Righteous, Rules of court, Decrees, Judgment, Orders of courts,
Injunctions, Tort, Jurisprudence, Legal theory, etc.
LAW
• Every country, every city, every town, every district present in this world has to follow
certain rules or regulations or we can say “Law”.
• There is always a sovereign which formulates laws for a state which is believed to be
good for the state and which helps the state to function justly. In many countries, the
sovereign or the people hire government which enforce these laws and if the laws are
violated then the penalty is faced by those who have violated them.
• In simple words, we can say Law is something which acts as a guideline to the people
and is believed to be good for human relations. It is said to be a set of rules and
regulations decided by the state or sovereign and followed by the people of that place.
• It can also be said as a command which has to be followed by the people. Who are
superior in society would make these laws and followed by the inferiors.
• Laws are made so that human behave appropriately and before doing any wrong think
twice. It helps in humans activities happening in the state. One who goes against
these rules face serious trials and get punished by the state.
MEANING OF LAW:
The term law has been derived from the Latin term
‘Legam’ which means the body of rules. In Hindu religion
or jurisprudence, law implies ‘Dharma’, in Islamic
religion it is ‘Hukum’, in Romans it is ‘Jus’ and in France
it is ‘Droit’, and in Germany it is ‘Richt’.
All these words convey different meaning. Thus, the term
law has different meanings in different places/societies
at different times as it is not static and it continues to
grow.
DEFINITIONS OF LAW:
It is very difficult to define the term law. Various jurists have attempted to define this
term. Some of the definitions given by jurists in different periods are categorized as
follows:
(i) Idealistic Definitions:
Romans and other ancient jurists defined law in its idealistic nature.
(a) Salmond:
According to Salmond, “the law may be defined as body of principles, recognised and
applied by the State in the administration of justice”.
(b)Gray, “According to Gray- the law of the state or of any organized body of men is
composed of the rules which the courts, that is the judicial organ of the body lays down
for the determination of legal rights and duties.”
 FEATURES OF LAW:
1. Law must be applicable to all. Everyone in the eyes of law is equal and no one can escape from the eyes

of the law.

2. Law is uniform in nature. Power of making law lies in the hand of the state. State passes those laws

which are considered to be for human welfare.

3. The state has a government which also helps in making law and through which laws are enforced.

4. Laws are said to be reliable and just for every individual present in the state. These are rules for every

individual.

5. Every state needs the law as it is believed to be the most important element which helps the state to

function smoothly.

6. Law can be the threat to those who are willing to do wrong in society and once they commit anything

wrong are severely punished.

7.The punishments which are given to the guilty are also decided
by the law.
8.Each country has the court which settles any issues taking
place in a state according to the laws formulated.
9. Law act as a shield to every individual in the state. It helps
people co-exist harmoniously and protect themselves from any
wrong or evil doings.
10.These laws are made by the representatives of the citizen. Then
this law also requires public opinion and should also function in
accordance with public needs.
11.Law is said to be blind as it does not believe in any
discrimination. All are equal in front of the law.
SOURCES OF LAW:

• Custom: these are believed to be one of the most important sources of law. In earlier
times people used to follow certain customs which were accepted by all and which served
as a fair, equal and just to all individuals. Different social institution borrowed these
customs. Who went against the will of custom would face punishment. Later these
customs took a new turn and formulated as an organized political institution having
converted all the customs into law. People started to believe these customs are best for
them, therefore, they are believed to be the best source of law.
• Religion and Morality: when we talk about religion and morality. Each religion has its
own set of rules and regulation which helps people be a good human. In past when there
was no organized institution of law so the religion played its role. Religion was followed
and whoever violated it suffered punishment according to their religion. People had in
mind that if they did anything wrong God will punish them and put them in hellfire and if
they did well they will enjoy in heaven. But with the improvement and human civilization
people started to put aside religion and began to go freely. Therefore some religious rules
turned into properly organized law. Few State took few rules and regulations and put
them as the rule which should be followed by all. Rules of morality and religion acted as
source material to the state to formulate the law.
• Legislation: In older days customs or rulers acted as the main
source of lawmaking. But the later government took place and in
government, we have a body which is said to legislation which now
acts as a main source of law. Legislation converts all customs to
guide people’s behavior. Every state has its own legislative body
which serves as a source and got the identity of the Legal sovereign
from ruler to the legislation.
• Delegated Legislation: due to less time, fewer people with
professional skills and quick need of laws to exercise the state gave
rise to the delegation of legislation. The state got an emergency to
make laws as quickly as possible as it cannot rely on one specific
legislation. So the power to make law was divided into different
executives for easy, fast and smooth lawmaking process. Now it
serves as a giant source of law.
• Judicial Decisions: the judicial decision means the decision made by the court in
accordance to looking after the cases and interprets which law should be applied
where. There are certain situations when judicial decisions also become laws for
future and that is why have to be considered as a source of law. Decisions made my
main courts which are recognized as apex court can only be used as proper law.
• Equity: this basically means acting fairly and serving justice to all. In some exceptional
cases, not all laws are suitable. So the judge as to use his intelligence and act with
keeping in mind d what is fair for whom. Equity serves as a painkiller to those who are
suffering and might be in future gain popularity and formulate laws on the basis of
equity.
• Scientific commentaries: many jurists use scientific commentaries to make some
laws better or we can say to develop and evolve laws jurist need these scientific
commentaries. Jurist points out problems and strengths of the law and help this law
to become stronger. The opinion given by this jurist is then used as a reference to
make a decision on certain cases.
 THERE CLASSIFICATION IS AS FOLLOWS:
SALMOND'S CLASSIFICATION OF LAW
SALMOND HAS GIVEN AN EXHAUSTIVE CLASSIFICATION OF LAWS. HE HAS REFERRED TO NINE KINDS OF
LAWS, WHICH ARE AS FOLLOWS:

• Imperative Law:
• It means "a rule which prescribes a general course of action imposed by some authority which
enforces it by superior power either by physical force or any other form of compulsion." 'Austin'
was the main exponent of imperative theory of law, which defines law as a command of the
sovereign which persons are obliged to obey. It may be either divine or human.
• The human laws may be of three kinds-civil law, law of positive morality and law of nations which
is also called 'International law'. Civil law consists of commands issued by the State to its subjects
and enforced by its physical power. The law of positive morality consists of rules imposed by
society upon its members and enforced by public ridicule or disapprobation. International law
consists of rules imposed upon State by the society of States and enforced partly by international
option and partly by the threat of war. Imperative law has two essential elements.
• Firstly, the command of the sovereign must be general and addressed to a particular person,
secondly, the observance of law must not depend upon the pleasure of people, but it should be
enforced by some authority.
Physical or Scientific Law
Physical laws are laws of Science which are expressions of the uniformities of nature.
There is perfect uniformity and regularity in these laws and are not subject to change.
For example, law of gravity, law of motion, law of air-pressure etc.

Natural or Moral Law

Natural law is based on the principles of right and wrong. It includes all forms of
righteous action. Natural law has also been called universal law or eternal law. It is
also called 'rational law' because it is based on reason. It embodies the principles of
morality and is devoid of any physical compulsion. Hugo Grotius made use of natural
law to formulate International law.
Other writers who based their legal philosophies on natural law principles are Aristotle,
Cicero, Kant, Locke, Pufendorf, etc. Natural law embodies the principles of natural
justice of which legal justice is more or less imperfect expression. Legal justice and
natural justice represent two intersecting circles, i.e. justice may be legal but not natural
or moral or it may be moral but not legal or it may be both legal and moral.
The three consequences of natural law are as follows:
1. It is in a position to render a human law void if it is repugnant to natural law.
2. During medieval period, natural law helped in development of judicial and legal
process. Natural rights of an individual acquired great importance in this period.
3. It has given strength to the international law to develop as a law.

Conventional Law
According to Salmond, conventional law means, "any rule or system of rules agreed
upon by persons for the regulation of their conduct towards each other."
It is a form of special law. For example, rules of a club or a co-operative society or any
voluntary organisation are instances of a conventional law. According to some writers,
law of nations which we call as International law is also a kind of conventional law
because its principles are expressly or impliedly agreed upon by the member States.
• Customary Law: There are many customs which have been prevalent in the community
from time immemorial even before the states came into existence. They have assumed the
force of law in course of time.
• According to Salmond: any rule of action which is actually observed by men when a
customs is firmly established, it is enforced by the state as law because of its general
approval by the people.“
• For example, the whole of Hindu law of marriage, adoption, succession etc is based on
customs prevalent in ancient Hindu society. There is a difference of opinion among jurists
about the authority of custom as a law. Some regard it as a proper Jaw while others treat it
simply as a source of law.
• Particularly, the positivists do not accept custom as a proper law but treat it only as a
source of law. But historical jurists like Savigny and Henry Maine have recognised
customary law as far more superior to the law of the State.
Practical or Technical Law
Practical laws are rules meant for a particular sphere by human activity. The laws of sanitation and health,
building construction and architecture etc may be included in this category.

International Law
The law of nations of the 18th century was named as International law by Bentham in 1780. It consists of rules
which regulate relations between the states inter se. According to Oppenheim, "International law is the body of
customary and conventional rules which are considered legally binding by civilised states in their inter course
with each other." The Permanent Court of International Justice (PCIJ) in SS Lotus case defined International
law as:
"Principles which are in force between all independent nations.“
According to Starke, International law is defined as "Rules of conduct which States feel themselves bound to
observe and therefore do commonly observe in their relations with each other, and which also includes:

1. the rules of law relating to functioning of international institutions and organisations, their relations
with each other and their relations with states and individuals,
2. certain rules of law relating to individuals so far as the rights and duties of such individuals are the
concerns of the international community.

According to Russel, International law is defined as, "the aggregate of the rules to which the nations have
agreed to their conduct towards one another." Salmond, however, believes that "International law is essentially
a species of conventional law and has its source in International agreements."
• According to Austin, Willoughby and Holland, International law is a mere positive morality. They do
not agree that it is law properly so-called. Austin defines law as a body of rules for human conduct
set and enforced by a sovereign political authority. In the absence of any binding force, the validity
of International law is solely dependent on the voluntary acceptance by the States and therefore, it
cannot be called as 'law' in true sense of the term.
• Holland also supports to this view of Austin and observes, "The rules of international law are
voluntary, though habitually observed by every State in its dealings with the rest, can be called 'law'
only by courtesy, Oppenheim defends international law as 'law' and says a Weak law nevertheless
is still a law.“
• Professor Dias suggests that there is no doubt, that the respect which States pay to international
law is far less than what individuals pay to municipal law, but still it is called 'law' to inspire a sense
of obligation among States to follow it. Therefore, it is 'law', but indeed a weak law.

According to Harold Laski, "States consent to the rules of International law not because they so
choose but really because they have no alternative." In Great Britain, International law is not ipso
facto regarded as a part of the UK law as held by Chief Justice Coleridge in Franconia case.
Prize Law That portion of International law which regulates the practices of the capture
of ships and cargo in wartime, as applied by courts is called 'prize law'. It is meant for
administering justice between the captors of ships or cargos and the persons interested
in the property seized. Salmond, however, disagreed with the view that prize law should
be regarded as a branch of International law in strict sense of the term.

Civil Law The law enforced by the state is called 'civil law'. The force of state is the
sanction behind this law. Civil law is essentially territorial in nature as it applies within
the territory of the state concerned. The term 'civil law' is derived from the Roman word
'jus civile', Austin and Holland prefer to call civil law as 'positive law' because it is,
enforced by the sovereign political authority. However, Salmond justifies the term 'civil
law' as the law of the land.
 AUSTIN'S CLASSIFICATION OF LAW

• John Austin has classified law into following categories: Divine Law and Human Law.

Positive moralities which are rules set by non-political superior e.g. international law. Law
metaphorically or figuratively so-called.
• Austin regards only divine law and human law as proper law but does not consider positive
morality and figurative law as law in real sense of the term as they lack binding force in the
absence of a sanction and no evil consequences follow in the event of their breach or
infringement.
HOLLAND'S CLASSIFICATION OF LAW
HOLLAND CLASSIFIED LAW ACCORDING TO THEIR FUNCTIONS. HE CLASSIFIED LAW INTO FOLLOWING
CATEGORIES:

Private and Public Law

Statutes are of two kinds, namely, public and private. The distinguishing features of a public act is
that judicial notice is taken about its existence. On the other hand, private is one which does not fall
within the ordinary cognizance of the courts of justice and will not be applied by them unless
specially called to their notice. The province of private law is the adjustment of relations between
person and person, whereas the public law deals with relationship between person and the state. In
case of private law, the parties to a case may either be natural or artificial persons and the state only
acts as an arbiter through its courts. The laws of property, contracts, corporations, torts, trusts etc
are examples of private law. Public law, on the other hand, seeks to regulate the activities of the
state.
The important sub-divisions of public law are:

1. Constitutional law
2. Administrative law
3. Criminal law
4. Criminal procedure.
Broadly speaking, public law deals with the rights and obligations of the state towards its citizens and
vice versa. Private and public law, taken together are called 'municipal law'. In public law, state is an
interested and enforcing party whereas in private law, state is only the enforcing authority.
General and Special Law - The territorial law of a country is called 'General law'. It consists of all
persons, things, acts and events within the territory of a country which are governed by it. For example,
Indian law of crimes and law of contracts are the general laws of the country because they have general
application throughout the territory of India. General law consists of those legal rules of which the courts
take judicial notice whereas the special law consists of those legal rules which courts will not recognise
and apply them as a matter of course but which must be specifically proved and brought to the notice of
the courts by the interested parties.
Salmond has rightly pointed out that the true test of distinction between the general law and special law
is judicial notice. Besides the general law, there are certain kinds of special laws which the court are
bound to know. They are called 'jus specile'. The maxim 'ignorantia juris non excusat' applies to special
laws in the same way as it applies in case of general laws.
The examples of special laws are the Bombay Prohibition Act, The Maharashtra Ownership of Flats Act,
Tamil Nadu Gambling Act, The Calcutta Police Act etc.
There are several kinds of special laws, namely:
a. Local law
b. foreign law
c. conventional law
d. autonomic law
e. martial law
f. International law
g. mercantile law etc.
Substantive and Procedural Law
According to Salmond, substantive law is that which defines a right while procedural law
determines the remedies. Procedural law is also called 'law in action' as it governs the process of
litigation. Substantive law is concerned with ends which the administration of justice seeks to
achieve while procedural law deals with the means by which those ends can be achieved. For
example, Law of Contract, Transfer of Property Act, Negotiable Instrument Act, crimes etc. are
substantive laws whereas the civil procedure or criminal procedure is procedural laws."

Antecedent and Remedial Law

Antecedent law relates to independent specific enforcement without any resort to any remedial law.
The law relating to specific performance of a contract is the best example of antecedent law. The
remedial law, on the other hand provides for a remedy. For example, law of torts, writs etc. come
within the category of remedial laws.
Law in Rem and Law in Personam
Law in rem relates to enforcement of rights which a person has against the whole world or against
the people if general, whereas law in personam deals with enforcement of right available against a
definite person or persons. For example, law of inheritance, succession, ownership etc comprise the
subject matter of law in rem while the law contract, trust etc.