Kara Sears
Statute law is law established by an act of the legislature that is signed by the executive. In the United States, federal statutory law is passed by Congress and signed by the President, while state law is passed by the state legislature and signed by the state governor. Statutes are typically written enactments that declare, command, or prohibit something. In the United States, proposed legislation is known as a Bill, which must be debated and passed by both Houses of Congress before receiving Royal Assent. Once passed, a statute is published in the form of slip laws, session laws, and codes. Slip laws are individual pamphlets containing the text of the law, session laws are annual compilations of laws passed in a legislative session, and codes are compilations of laws in effect, organized by subject.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Statute definition | A law or formal written enactment of a legislature |
| Statute derivation | Derived from the Old French words "statut, estatut, estatu", meaning "(royal) promulgation, (legal) statute." |
| Statute creation | Created by the expressed will of a legislative body, such as a country, state, province, county, or municipality |
| Statute proposal | Proposed by individuals or government bodies, such as the Royal Commission, pressure groups, or private members |
| Statute proposal format | Proposed as a Bill or draft legislation |
| Statute proposal location | Proposed in the Westminster Parliament, consisting of two chambers (Houses) and the monarch |
| Statute passage | Passed by Congress or individual state legislatures in the US; passed by national legislatures or autonomous communities in Spain |
| Statute signing | Signed by the executive, such as the President of the United States or a state governor |
| Statute publication | Published and distributed to the public for reference; published in the form of government gazettes or books |
| Statute arrangement | Arranged by titles, chapters, and sections; can be organized by subject or in chronological order of enactment |
| Statute updates | Updated through pocket parts, small paper inserts in code books, until a new edition is published |
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Federal statutory law
The United States Code is a consolidation and codification of the general and permanent laws of the United States. It is prepared by the Office of the Law Revision Counsel of the United States House of Representatives. To update the codebooks when new laws are passed, small paper updates called pocket parts are used. These are slid into pockets at the back of the books and are updated until a new edition of the book is published.
The United States Congress meets in two-year terms, with two annual sessions. During each Congress, the US Senate and House of Representatives consider over 5000 bills and enact several hundred statutes. These can range from simple designations of commemorative days to complex legislation on issues such as the environment, economy, and social issues. Each law passed is designated as either a public law or a private law. Public laws are the most common form of law passed by Congress, affecting society as a whole. Private laws, on the other hand, only affect an individual, family, or small group. While public laws are usually codified into the United States Code, private laws are not.
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State law
In the United States, both the U.S. Congress and individual state legislatures have the power to pass statutes. State law is passed by the state legislature and signed by the state governor. Each state has its own state statutes, found in state codes. For instance, Washington State has the Revised Code of Washington, while Massachusetts has the Massachusetts Code. These state codes are often available in official or unofficial, annotated or unannotated versions.
Statutes are laws enacted by a legislative body. They typically declare, command or prohibit something. They are distinguished from court law and unwritten law (common law) in that they are the expressed will of a legislative body, whether on behalf of a country, state, province, county, or municipality. Statutes are arranged by titles, then chapters, then sections. Titles can consist of one or more volumes. For example, Title 42 of the United States Code, dealing with Public Health and Welfare, consists of over 35 printed volumes.
In many nations, statutory law is distinguished from and subordinate to constitutional law. The term statute is also used to refer to an international treaty that establishes an institution, such as the Statute of the European Central Bank or the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. Statutes are published and distributed so that everyone can look up the statutory law. This can be done through a government gazette or a series of books whose content is limited to legislative acts. Statutes are traditionally published in chronological order based on the date of enactment.
To update the code books when new laws are passed, pocket parts are used. These are small paper updates that slide into "pockets" in the back of the books. Pocket parts are themselves updated until a new edition of the book is published.
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City and county law
In the United States, local ordinances are laws that are enforced in addition to state and federal law. Local ordinances are issued by a local government, such as a municipality, county, parish, prefecture, or similar. For example, in Connecticut, legislative bodies at the local level develop city and town ordinances to govern the public.
Local ordinances must be approved by a local assembly and promulgated by the mayor or governor of the local government in question. The mayor may demand a second vote but may not veto the ordinance. In some states, local law cannot duplicate state law, and some subjects are prohibited from being covered by local ordinance. For instance, in Maryland, local governments are prohibited from passing gun control laws or other ordinances dealing with firearms or ammunition.
Counties often have a municipal charter, provide local ordinances, and dictate the powers of the government. Cities, towns, or villages within a county may have their own local laws and governments. Local disputes can involve zoning, taxation, criminal and civil courts, and business law. Local zoning ordinances can apply to businesses and residential areas, addressing public safety, land use, and real estate.
Municipalities have the power to make laws for specific purposes for certain geographic areas. For example, a municipal code may designate an area for industrial use only, with regulations for dimensions, placement of utilities, parking, types of buildings, and more.
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International treaties
Treaties can be bilateral (between two states) or multilateral (between three or more states). The United States, for example, enters into more than 200 treaties and other international agreements each year. Treaties can be made on a wide range of subjects, including peace, trade, defence, territorial boundaries, human rights, law enforcement, and environmental matters.
The Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties is the UN agreement that codifies the rules that guide treaty relations between states. The Convention provides an international legal framework for these relations in times of peace. This framework includes rules on the conclusion and entry into force of treaties, their observance, application, interpretation, amendment, and modification, as well as rules on invalidity, termination, and suspension of the operation of treaties.
The Statute of the International Court of Justice and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court are examples of statutes that are also international treaties.
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Common law
In practice, common law systems are considerably more complicated than the simplified system described above. The decisions of a court are binding only in a particular jurisdiction, and even within a given jurisdiction, some courts have more power than others. For example, in most jurisdictions, decisions by appellate courts are binding on lower courts in the same jurisdiction, and on future decisions of the same appellate court, but decisions of lower courts are only non-binding persuasive authority.
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Frequently asked questions
Statute law is made by a legislative body, such as the U.S. Congress or individual state legislatures.
The process of making statute law involves proposing, presenting, and debating legislation in a parliament or legislative body. The legislation is known as a Bill, which must be debated and passed by both Houses. Once passed, it is signed by the executive, such as the President of the United States or a state governor.
Statute law is published and distributed to the public. In the U.S., federal statutes can be found in the United States Code, while state statutes are found in state codes, such as the Revised Code of Washington.
