What Is Rule of Law?

Law

Law is a system of rules within a community, country or society. Its purpose is to keep peace, protect minorities, promote social justice, and preserve individual rights. In addition, it may serve to maintain status quo or provide orderly social change.

There are many things that constitute law, but they are not all the same. Laws are made by various entities, including the government. These entities include the legislature and the courts. They are intended to protect the public from abuses of power and to settle disputes between individuals and governments. However, different legal systems fulfill these purposes better than others. Some systems also make laws that are more accessible and easier to understand for the public.

Rule of Law is an ideal that has been a fixture in political tradition for thousands of years. For millennia, philosophers and scholars have argued about the relationship between law and justice. Aristotle, for example, emphasized the difference between the rule of men and the rule of law. He maintained that while the rule of law was a good thing, it could be hideously unjust.

The goal of Rule of Law is to ensure that the law is a public knowledge that is promulgated well before individual responsibility is assumed. Moreover, the law must be consistent, intelligible, and accessible to all. This ensures that all citizens have access to protection.

According to Lon Fuller, there are eight formal principles of law. These principles are generality, consistency, equitability, practicability, publicity, publicity, and prospectivity. Generality is usually taken to mean that making specific laws should be guided by open, neutral, and impersonal rules. On the other hand, consistency means that a law must be evenhandedly administered, and it must be equally applicable to all people.

Those who advocate Rule of Law say that it requires a strong, independent judiciary. The judiciary is a branch of the government that does not command armies or police forces. Judges are responsible for determining the law and establishing rulings on that law. If the law is unconstitutional, the state courts can declare it invalid.

Legal systems differ greatly from one nation to the next. One country might have a stable constitution, while another might be dominated by an authoritarian government. Likewise, a legal system in a western nation might not be as accessible to the public as a system in a developing nation.

Despite its widespread acceptance, there is still debate about the substantive aspects of Rule of Law. Some jurists argue that Rule of Law is a purely formal ideal, while others insist that it must be accompanied by certain substantive values, such as social justice and equality. Nevertheless, the majority of jurists, both liberal and conservative, agree that Rule of Law is a necessary and desirable component of democracy.

The rule of law is an ideal that must be enforced to prevent abuse of power by the government and its officials. Those who do not comply with the law are subject to prosecution and jail time.