The law, which encompasses a vast range of rules that govern and control society, is an integral part of our world and shapes it in numerous ways. It serves the purposes of establishing standards, maintaining order and resolving disputes. It also influences politics, economics and history in many ways. The precise nature of law is the subject of long-running debate. The main aspects of the law are a legal system and its court(s). Law may be interpreted as either a social science or an art form. Laws are generally created and enforced by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior. There are two major types of legal systems: (a) civil law, in which a central legislative authority codifies and consolidates laws; and (b) common law, in which judges and lawyers use precedent to decide cases. Both are important in modern societies.
The study of law requires an individual to have excellent research skills and a pragmatic mindset in order to explore the issues in a systematic manner. Having good communication skills is also vital for writing articles on the subject, especially because there is a lot of technical jargon that has to be understood. Those who want to pursue a career in the field of law can find that it is an incredibly rewarding profession.
Among the most complex elements of law are its ontological character and its relationships to other sciences and disciplines. Normative statements in law are deprived of the descriptive or causal character that are present in empirical science (as the law of gravity) and even in social science (the law of supply and demand). It is not possible to test the validity of authoritative statements in law, as it is with other sciences, but this does not necessarily mean that such statements are correct.
Other elements of law include the judicial branch of government and its relationship to political structures. It is not uncommon for a controversy to arise over the extent to which the judging class should be politically independent from the government, and it is also not unusual for there to be disagreements on whether or not specific laws are morally right or wrong.
Other areas of law include criminal law, commercial law and family law. The latter consists of rules and customs governing the rights and duties of people with regard to their families, spouses and children. It includes issues such as adoption, child custody and property. Space law is an area of increasing importance that addresses the legal issues of human activity in Earth orbit and outer space. It is based on international law and treaties. Regulation of businesses is another important aspect of the law, which can include everything from taxes on airlines to food safety standards. The legal process of impeachment is a constitutional procedure by which a high official may be removed from office for misconduct, such as corruption or incompetence. A more esoteric area of the law is eugenics, which attempts to prevent genetic disorders by using legislation and public policy.