Law is a set of rules created by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior and enforce justice. Its precise definition is a matter of longstanding debate. Some scholars, such as Jeremy Bentham, argue that it is simply a system of commandments backed by the threat of sanctions, from a sovereign to whom people have a natural habit of obedience. Others, such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Thomas Aquinas, argue that law reflects a moral and unchanging set of principles of nature.

The study of law is often divided into several subfields, including constitutional law, criminal law, property law, tort law, and family law. The law also encompasses many areas of specialization, such as legal practice and ethics, the law of nations, and comparative law.

In addition, laws may be local, national, international or regional in scope. An example of a local law is an ordinance or statute that governs the use of a specific geographic area, such as a city or county. A national law, on the other hand, is a statutory or constitutional instrument that is binding across an entire jurisdiction.

An important characteristic of law is that it establishes and enforces order, even when there are competing demands for power. The fact that law is coercive makes it a powerful tool for social control. Some theorists, such as Claude Roscoe Pound, have described the law as a “normative science.”

The role of the state in a society is another key issue in the study of law. This can be seen in the way that a government can keep peace, maintain the status quo, preserve individual rights and liberties, protect minorities against majorities, promote social justice and provide for orderly social change. The degree to which a state can do these things is, however, limited by the constraints of its political structure. An authoritarian regime, for instance, can keep the peace and maintain the status quo, but it will be difficult for such a nation to preserve individual rights or protect minorities. In this context, the term civil society is often used to describe a community of social institutions, communities and partnerships that form the political basis for law.