Chapter I

LAW, ITS CONCEPT AND CLASSIFICATION

DEFINITION OF LAW
The term "law" in its broadest sense, means any rule of action
or norm of conduct applicable to all kinds of action and to all objects
of creation. In thls sense therefore, it includes all laws, whether they
refer to state law, physical law, divine law and others.
In a strict legal sense, law is defined as a rule of conduct, just and
obligatory, laid down by legitimate authority for common observance
and benefit. (Sanchez Roman, 23) Based on this definition, law has
the following elements:
1. It is a rule of conduct - Laws serve as guides of
an individual in relation to his fellowmen and to his
community;
2. Law must be just - The chapter on human relations is
now precisely embedded in the New Civil Code in order
to obtain stability of the social order. Laws, as guides for
human conduct, "should run as golden threads through
society, to the end that law may approach its supreme
ideal whlch is the sway and dominance of justice" (Report
of the Code Commission, p . 39);
3. It must be obligatory - If laws are not enforced, the
purpose for which they are intended will not be served;
4. Laws must be prescribed by legitimate authority -
If laws are not prescribed by legitimate authority, the
people could not be expected to observe them. Authority
to make laws is conferred upon those duly chosen by
the sovereign will of the people. This is in consonance
with Section 1, Article 2 of the Philippine Constitution
whlch says that "sovereignty resides in the people and all
government authority emanates from them";

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 INTRODUCTION TO LAW
3
CHAPTER I
LAW, ITS CONCEPT AND CLASSIFICATION

Laws must be ordained for . the c~m~,n benefit - c. International Law - body
5.
This recognizes the famous Latm maxim of Salus Popu[i of rules which regulates the
Est Suprema Lex" - the welfare of the _p eople shall be community of nations.
the supreme law. Laws should be apphed not only to
a particular group of ~i~izens. They are supp?sed _to be Private Law - Body of rules
applied equally to all citizens re?ar~less of their rehgion, which creates duties, rights
political persuasion, and status m hfe. and obligations, and the
means and methods of set-
ting courts in motion for the
CLASSIFICATION OF LAW enforcement of a right or of a
Physical Law - Universal rule redress of wrong. (Words and
I. NATURAL LAW - of action that governs the Phrases, Vol. 24, 337)
This law derives its conduct and movement of
force and authority things which are non-free and a. Substantive Private Law
from God. It is supe- material. - those rules which declare
rior to other laws. It is legal relations of litigants
binding to the whole Moral Law - Set of rules which when the courts have been
world, in all countries establishes what is right and properly moved to action upon
and at eternal law. what is wrong as dictated by facts duly presented to them.
the human conscience and as (24 Words and Phrases, 337)
inspired by the all times. b. Procedural or A<Uective
Private Law - refers to the
Divine Law means and methods of setting
a. Divine Positive Law, i.e., Ten the courts in motion, making
the facts known to them and
Commandments
effectuating their judgments.
b. Divine Human.Positive Law,
i.e., Commandments of the
Church. SOURCES OF LAW
Law is derived from different sources, namely: (1) legislation;
Public Law (2) precedent; (3) custom; and (4 ) court decision.
a. Constitutional Law - is (a) LEGISLATION - Before the declaration of Martial Law
2. POSITIVE LAW the fundamental law of the in the Philippines on September 21, 1972, the power to legislate
land which defines the powers laws is vested in the Congress of the Philippines which consists of
of the government. the Senate and the House of Representatives. Upon the imposition
of Martial Law and after the dissolution of the old Congress, the
b. Administrative Law - that power to legislate law is vested in the President of the Philippines.
law which fixes the organiza· This is the reason why the President issued presidential decrees and
tion and determines the coJil· letters of instructions. When the Batasang Pambansa was organized,
petence of the administrative legislative power is principally vested in this body although the
authorities and which regu· President, under and by virtue of what is known as Amendment
lates the methods by which No. 6, continued to issue decrees when the exigency of the situation
the functions of the govern·
ment are performed.

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 INTRODUCTION TO LAW

CHAPTER I
LAW, ITS CONCEPT AND CLASSIFICATION

\ . .
. d .
reqwres an m cas
this 1s one o
e of other emergencies. Among many other
h t 1
f th dictatorial acts t a was severe y questioned
e t · N
s,
system in the Philippines but they are not laws. However, although
and critics of the pas regime. ow, after th judicial decisions are not laws, they are evidence of the meaning and
) by several lawyers
, R lt
86 d . d
February 22-25, 19 , an m accor ance With
e
interpretations of the laws.
Peoples evo on . FT . 1
the wishes and the will of the ~overe1gn I ipmo ~eop e, the three In the Philippines, we adhere to the doctrine of STARE
branches of government operatmg under the do~trme of s.eparation DEC/SIS which means that once a case has been decided one way,
of powers are restored, with each department bemg c~mm1tted to do then another case involving exactly the same question or point of
its utmost share in bringing about a more democratic and efficient law should be decided in the same manner. This principle, however,
system of government that is responsive to the needs of the people. does not necessarily mean that erroneous decisions, or those found
to be contrary to law must be perpetuated. On the contrary, they
(b) PRECEDENT - This means that ~h~ d~c~sions or
should be abandoned.
principles enunciated by a court of co~petent JUnsd1ct10n on a
question of law do not only serve as guides but also as authority
to be followed by all other courts of equal or inferior jurisdiction in
all cases involving the same question until the same is overruled or
reversed by a superior court. In the Philippines, this doctrine of stare
decisis is not applied and recognized in the same manner that it is
applied and recognized in common law countries. However, our New
Civil Code provides as follows: "x x x Judicial decisions applying or
interpreting the laws or the Constitution shall form a part of the
legal system of the Philippines.xx x" (Art. 8, NCC)
(c) CUSTOM - Customs have the force of law only when
they are acknowledged and approved by society through long and
uninterrupted usage.
In the Philippines, there are several requisites before the court
considers custom. They are as follows:
a. A custom must be proved as a fact according to the
rules of evidence (Art. 12, NCC);
b. The custom must not be contrary to law (Art. 11,
NCC);
c. There must be a number of repeated acts and these
repeated acts must have been uniformly performed;
d. There must be a judicial intention to make a rule of
social conduct; and

e. A ~ustom must be acknowledged and approved by

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