{"id":11933,"date":"2018-10-11T20:50:15","date_gmt":"2018-10-11T20:50:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/?post_type=chapter&#038;p=11933"},"modified":"2024-05-03T15:45:48","modified_gmt":"2024-05-03T15:45:48","slug":"understanding-law","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/chapter\/understanding-law\/","title":{"raw":"Understanding Law","rendered":"Understanding Law"},"content":{"raw":"<div class=\"textbox learning-objectives\">\r\n<h3>Learning Outcomes<\/h3>\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Define law<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\nLawyer and educator Lloyd Duhaime defines law as \u201cconduct approved and enforced by the government of and over a certain territory.\u201d[footnote]\"Law Definition.\" Accessed June 12, 2019. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.duhaime.org\/LegalDictionary\/L\/Law.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">http:\/\/www.duhaime.org\/LegalDictionary\/L\/Law.aspx<\/a>.[\/footnote] Distilling the concept to its essence, McGill University law professor and author Wendy Adams defines law as \u201ca mechanism for facilitating and regulating interaction between autonomous entities.\u201d What\u2019s fascinating is the essential role of law in society. In\u00a0<em>Essentials of Business Law<\/em>, the authors note that \u201cevery society of which we have any historical record has had some system of laws.\u201d[footnote]Beatty, Jeffrey F., and Susan S. Samuelson. <em>Essentials of Business Law<\/em>, 5th ed., p. 3. Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning, 2015.[\/footnote]\r\n\r\nNote that the term \u201claw\u201d is used to refer to legislation\u2014for example, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and other anti-discrimination legislation discussed in Module 15: Human Resource Management\u2014as well as common law, described as \u201cjudge-made law,\u201d since it\u2019s based on precedent or prior court rulings.\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #333333;\"><img class=\"alignright wp-image-11937\" src=\"https:\/\/s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/courses-images\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3006\/2018\/10\/11204915\/ferret-1024x620.jpg\" alt=\"a ferret on a leash\" width=\"350\" height=\"212\" \/>Although intended to protect the fundamental rights and liberties of U.S. citizens, the legal system and its laws\u00a0are not always readily\u00a0understood by the average citizen. At what point\u00a0do we cross that fine line between legal and illegal, and on what basis is that line even drawn in the first place?\u00a0Most people understand (and accept) laws prohibiting acts of\u00a0murder, thievery, physical harm, and financial malfeasance, but there are plenty of\u00a0other laws that might\u00a0give us pause.\u00a0For example, in Minnesota, any game in which participants attempt to capture a greased or oiled pig is illegal. The same laws also prohibit turkey scrambles.[footnote]\"2013 Minnesota Statutes Section 343.36.\" Accessed June 11, 2019. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.revisor.mn.gov\/statutes\/2013\/cite\/343.36\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/www.revisor.mn.gov\/statutes\/2013\/cite\/343.36<\/a>.[\/footnote] Don't attempt to substitute a ferret for a hunting dog in West Virginia. Anyone who hunts, catches, takes, kills, injures, or pursues a wild animal or bird with a ferret will face a fine of no less than $100 (but no more than $500) and no fewer\u00a0than 10 (but no more than 100) days in jail.\u00a0[footnote] \"West Virginia Code 20 - 2 - 5.\" Accessed June 11, 2019. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.legis.state.wv.us\/legisdocs\/code\/20\/WVC%2020%20%20-%20%202%20%20-%20%20%205%20%20.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">http:\/\/www.legis.state.wv.us\/legisdocs\/code\/20\/WVC%2020%20%20-%20%202%20%20-%20%20%205%20%20.htm<\/a>.[\/footnote]<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #333333;\">While\u00a0you may never have considered taking part\u00a0in a turkey scramble or hunting with a ferret, chances are good that you have broken some\u00a0law at some time\u2014perhaps even in the last twenty-four hours. Did you exceed a speed limit while driving? Roll through a stop sign at an empty intersection while riding your bike? Drive to the minimart without wearing your seatbelt? Although unlikely that you will be prosecuted and jailed for these\u00a0minor traffic offenses, the fact is that you broke the law. Why do we have so many laws? Let's take a closer look at the role of law in society and why laws are\u00a0created in the first place.<\/span>\r\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\r\n<h3>Practice Question<\/h3>\r\nhttps:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/6dc61ee3-56b1-4543-a578-459f862f6d99\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\nU.S. law is based primarily on English law, with influences from other societies as well as our colonial\/revolutionary experience. Most notably, our Constitution, with its division of power between the state and federal governments, was inspired by the League of the Iroquois, a \u00a0Native American League or Confederacy governance structure. As documented by the Milwaukee Public Museum, the structure was designed to unite the five major nations\u2014the Cayuga, Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, and Seneca\u2014with \u201cone mind, one heart, one law.\u201d[footnote]\"The League of the Iroquois.\" Milwaukee Public Museum. Accessed June 12, 2019 https:\/\/www.mpm.edu\/educators\/wirp\/nations\/oneida\/early-historical-background[\/footnote] Intra-tribal issues were handled at the individual nation level. Each nation elected representatives to the Council, which was charged with managing relations between the tribes and the Confederacy and other entities\u2014for example, relations with the United States Government.","rendered":"<div class=\"textbox learning-objectives\">\n<h3>Learning Outcomes<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Define law<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>Lawyer and educator Lloyd Duhaime defines law as \u201cconduct approved and enforced by the government of and over a certain territory.\u201d<a class=\"footnote\" title=\"&quot;Law Definition.&quot; Accessed June 12, 2019. http:\/\/www.duhaime.org\/LegalDictionary\/L\/Law.aspx.\" id=\"return-footnote-11933-1\" href=\"#footnote-11933-1\" aria-label=\"Footnote 1\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[1]<\/sup><\/a> Distilling the concept to its essence, McGill University law professor and author Wendy Adams defines law as \u201ca mechanism for facilitating and regulating interaction between autonomous entities.\u201d What\u2019s fascinating is the essential role of law in society. In\u00a0<em>Essentials of Business Law<\/em>, the authors note that \u201cevery society of which we have any historical record has had some system of laws.\u201d<a class=\"footnote\" title=\"Beatty, Jeffrey F., and Susan S. Samuelson. Essentials of Business Law, 5th ed., p. 3. Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning, 2015.\" id=\"return-footnote-11933-2\" href=\"#footnote-11933-2\" aria-label=\"Footnote 2\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[2]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Note that the term \u201claw\u201d is used to refer to legislation\u2014for example, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and other anti-discrimination legislation discussed in Module 15: Human Resource Management\u2014as well as common law, described as \u201cjudge-made law,\u201d since it\u2019s based on precedent or prior court rulings.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #333333;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright wp-image-11937\" src=\"https:\/\/s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/courses-images\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3006\/2018\/10\/11204915\/ferret-1024x620.jpg\" alt=\"a ferret on a leash\" width=\"350\" height=\"212\" \/>Although intended to protect the fundamental rights and liberties of U.S. citizens, the legal system and its laws\u00a0are not always readily\u00a0understood by the average citizen. At what point\u00a0do we cross that fine line between legal and illegal, and on what basis is that line even drawn in the first place?\u00a0Most people understand (and accept) laws prohibiting acts of\u00a0murder, thievery, physical harm, and financial malfeasance, but there are plenty of\u00a0other laws that might\u00a0give us pause.\u00a0For example, in Minnesota, any game in which participants attempt to capture a greased or oiled pig is illegal. The same laws also prohibit turkey scrambles.<a class=\"footnote\" title=\"&quot;2013 Minnesota Statutes Section 343.36.&quot; Accessed June 11, 2019. https:\/\/www.revisor.mn.gov\/statutes\/2013\/cite\/343.36.\" id=\"return-footnote-11933-3\" href=\"#footnote-11933-3\" aria-label=\"Footnote 3\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[3]<\/sup><\/a> Don&#8217;t attempt to substitute a ferret for a hunting dog in West Virginia. Anyone who hunts, catches, takes, kills, injures, or pursues a wild animal or bird with a ferret will face a fine of no less than $100 (but no more than $500) and no fewer\u00a0than 10 (but no more than 100) days in jail.\u00a0<a class=\"footnote\" title=\"&quot;West Virginia Code 20 - 2 - 5.&quot; Accessed June 11, 2019. http:\/\/www.legis.state.wv.us\/legisdocs\/code\/20\/WVC%2020%20%20-%20%202%20%20-%20%20%205%20%20.htm.\" id=\"return-footnote-11933-4\" href=\"#footnote-11933-4\" aria-label=\"Footnote 4\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[4]<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #333333;\">While\u00a0you may never have considered taking part\u00a0in a turkey scramble or hunting with a ferret, chances are good that you have broken some\u00a0law at some time\u2014perhaps even in the last twenty-four hours. Did you exceed a speed limit while driving? Roll through a stop sign at an empty intersection while riding your bike? Drive to the minimart without wearing your seatbelt? Although unlikely that you will be prosecuted and jailed for these\u00a0minor traffic offenses, the fact is that you broke the law. Why do we have so many laws? Let&#8217;s take a closer look at the role of law in society and why laws are\u00a0created in the first place.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\n<h3>Practice Question<\/h3>\n<p>\t<iframe id=\"assessment_practice_6dc61ee3-56b1-4543-a578-459f862f6d99\" class=\"resizable\" src=\"https:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/6dc61ee3-56b1-4543-a578-459f862f6d99?iframe_resize_id=assessment_practice_id_6dc61ee3-56b1-4543-a578-459f862f6d99\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;width:100%;height:100%;min-height:300px;\"><br \/>\n\t<\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>U.S. law is based primarily on English law, with influences from other societies as well as our colonial\/revolutionary experience. Most notably, our Constitution, with its division of power between the state and federal governments, was inspired by the League of the Iroquois, a \u00a0Native American League or Confederacy governance structure. As documented by the Milwaukee Public Museum, the structure was designed to unite the five major nations\u2014the Cayuga, Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, and Seneca\u2014with \u201cone mind, one heart, one law.\u201d<a class=\"footnote\" title=\"&quot;The League of the Iroquois.&quot; Milwaukee Public Museum. Accessed June 12, 2019 https:\/\/www.mpm.edu\/educators\/wirp\/nations\/oneida\/early-historical-background\" id=\"return-footnote-11933-5\" href=\"#footnote-11933-5\" aria-label=\"Footnote 5\"><sup class=\"footnote\">[5]<\/sup><\/a> Intra-tribal issues were handled at the individual nation level. Each nation elected representatives to the Council, which was charged with managing relations between the tribes and the Confederacy and other entities\u2014for example, relations with the United States Government.<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t <section class=\"citations-section\" role=\"contentinfo\">\n\t\t\t <h3>Candela Citations<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t <div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <div id=\"citation-list-11933\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <div class=\"licensing\"><div class=\"license-attribution-dropdown-subheading\">CC licensed content, Original<\/div><ul class=\"citation-list\"><li>Examples of Laws. <strong>Authored by<\/strong>: Linda Williams and Lumen Learning. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/\">CC BY: Attribution<\/a><\/em><\/li><li>Understanding Law. <strong>Authored by<\/strong>: Nina Burokas. <strong>Provided by<\/strong>: Lumen Learning. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/\">CC BY: Attribution<\/a><\/em><\/li><\/ul><div class=\"license-attribution-dropdown-subheading\">CC licensed content, Shared previously<\/div><ul class=\"citation-list\"><li>Modification of ferret on leash in yoyogi park. <strong>Authored by<\/strong>: su.bo. <strong>Provided by<\/strong>: Flickr. <strong>Located at<\/strong>: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/flic.kr\/p\/4WVKD4\">https:\/\/flic.kr\/p\/4WVKD4<\/a>. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/4.0\/\">CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike<\/a><\/em><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t <\/section><hr class=\"before-footnotes clear\" \/><div class=\"footnotes\"><ol><li id=\"footnote-11933-1\">\"Law Definition.\" Accessed June 12, 2019. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.duhaime.org\/LegalDictionary\/L\/Law.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">http:\/\/www.duhaime.org\/LegalDictionary\/L\/Law.aspx<\/a>. <a href=\"#return-footnote-11933-1\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 1\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-11933-2\">Beatty, Jeffrey F., and Susan S. Samuelson. <em>Essentials of Business Law<\/em>, 5th ed., p. 3. Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning, 2015. <a href=\"#return-footnote-11933-2\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 2\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-11933-3\">\"2013 Minnesota Statutes Section 343.36.\" Accessed June 11, 2019. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.revisor.mn.gov\/statutes\/2013\/cite\/343.36\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/www.revisor.mn.gov\/statutes\/2013\/cite\/343.36<\/a>. <a href=\"#return-footnote-11933-3\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 3\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-11933-4\"> \"West Virginia Code 20 - 2 - 5.\" Accessed June 11, 2019. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.legis.state.wv.us\/legisdocs\/code\/20\/WVC%2020%20%20-%20%202%20%20-%20%20%205%20%20.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">http:\/\/www.legis.state.wv.us\/legisdocs\/code\/20\/WVC%2020%20%20-%20%202%20%20-%20%20%205%20%20.htm<\/a>. <a href=\"#return-footnote-11933-4\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 4\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><li id=\"footnote-11933-5\">\"The League of the Iroquois.\" Milwaukee Public Museum. Accessed June 12, 2019 https:\/\/www.mpm.edu\/educators\/wirp\/nations\/oneida\/early-historical-background <a href=\"#return-footnote-11933-5\" class=\"return-footnote\" aria-label=\"Return to footnote 5\">&crarr;<\/a><\/li><\/ol><\/div>","protected":false},"author":17,"menu_order":3,"template":"","meta":{"_candela_citation":"[{\"type\":\"original\",\"description\":\"Examples of Laws\",\"author\":\"Linda Williams and Lumen Learning\",\"organization\":\"\",\"url\":\"\",\"project\":\"\",\"license\":\"cc-by\",\"license_terms\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"cc\",\"description\":\"Modification of ferret on leash in yoyogi park\",\"author\":\"su.bo\",\"organization\":\"Flickr\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/flic.kr\/p\/4WVKD4\",\"project\":\"\",\"license\":\"cc-by-sa\",\"license_terms\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"original\",\"description\":\"Understanding Law\",\"author\":\"Nina Burokas\",\"organization\":\"Lumen Learning\",\"url\":\"\",\"project\":\"\",\"license\":\"cc-by\",\"license_terms\":\"\"}]","CANDELA_OUTCOMES_GUID":"88c03730-8f89-4db2-8794-929f5875d999, f263a75f-c88a-4dcd-93aa-88c2b70f00d5","pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":[],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[],"license":[],"class_list":["post-11933","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry"],"part":84,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/11933","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/17"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/11933\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15410,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/11933\/revisions\/15410"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/84"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/11933\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11933"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=11933"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=11933"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-introductiontobusiness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=11933"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}