Basic laws establish the main principles for a system of laws, such as federal and state constitutions. They set out categories of rights and responsibilities for citizens and the government. The US Constitution established limited government power and individual rights. Basic laws can also apply to specific areas, such as the Basic Law of Education in Japan. Violating basic laws may be illegal, but punishments may not always be required.
The basic law, also called the organic law, sets the standards for a system of laws. Most federal and state constitutions are considered examples of a fundamental right. A system of basic laws establishes the main principles from which all other laws are to be constructed.
In a constitution, this type of law is used to establish the basic categories of rights and responsibilities for both citizens and the government. The US Constitution, for example, gives powers and limitations to the government and establishes some of the basic rights of US citizens.
The rights and norms created by these laws will vary according to the needs and wishes of the citizens involved in the creation of the constitution. The original US constitution was very concerned with creating a stable and elected government that would have limited power due to centuries of dissatisfaction with tyrannical monarchies.
Likewise, in the time of the Founding Fathers, America was a place of immigrants and refugees from plagues, tyrants, and religious oppression. Thus, one of the fundamental principles repeatedly affirmed in the US Constitution was the idea that people have individual rights to freedom of expression, freedom of religion, the right to participate in elections, and the freedom to own property. Of course, in the 18th century, the definition of “people” was limited to white landowning males, which later constitutional amendments changed to include all adults of any race or sex.
A basic law does not apply only to nation building. The term can be used to describe any legal basis upon which a system of some kind is founded. For example, in Japan, the Basic Law of Education was created in 1947 as a charter for the education system throughout the country. This document, which was revised in 2006, sets out the basic principles that education is vital to the state and that it should be available in all places, to all people.
Documents and charters that are recognized as basic laws may be amenable to change, but may be impossible to legally overturn. Since the principles contained within are held to be the foundation of the state, they are therefore usually the most concrete laws in existence. This does not mean, however, that this law is open to broad interpretation. Constitutional scholars, lawyers, politicians and academics often clash over the exact meaning of a law.
While the violation of a basic law may be technically illegal, there are not always applicable or even widely required punishments in all situations. For example, the US Constitution quite explicitly guarantees individual freedom of expression, backed by a long history of judicial precedent that includes choice of dress as a protected form of expression. However, many mandatory public schools require students to adhere to a dress code, even if this technically violates basic laws.
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