law-¹All the rules (or any one of such rules) of conduct established and enforced by the authority, legislation, or custom of a given community, state, or other group. ² The condition existing when obedience to such rules is general (e.g., to establish law and order). ³ The branch of knowledge dealing with such rules; jurisprudence. ⁴ The system of courts in which such rules are referred to in defending one’s rights and securing justice. ⁵ In mathematics, a general principle to which all applicable cases must conform [e.g., the law of exponents); logic.

law, common-¹Principles and rules of action determined by court decisions which have been accepted generation by generation, and which are distinguished from laws enacted by legislative bodies. ² The body of judicial decisions developed in England and based upon immemorial usage; unwritten law as opposed to statute, or written, law. The English common law forms the foundation for the system of law in the United States.

law, statute—Law enacted by a legislative body. To be distinguished from “regulation,” which refers to a rule of a group or organization, enforced by authority, and “ordinance,” which is a local, generally municipal, law. See also statute.

law of boundaries—A collection of common-law statutes and rulings which influences decisions in determination of boundaries where conflicting evidence exists.

law of reflection—The angle between the reflected ray (normal to the wave front) and the normal to the reflecting surface is the same as the angle between this normal and the incident ray, provided the reflected wave is of the same type (travels with the same velocity) as the incident wave.

law of refraction—See refraction, Snell’s law of.

law of the land—A specific application law implying prescription and enforcement by a ruling authority.

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Source: NSPS “Definitions of Surveying and Related Terms“, used with permission.

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