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Difference between revisions of "The Law for Family Matters"
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Both the Parliament of Canada and the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia have the power to make laws in their different areas of authority. This kind of law is called legislation, and each piece of legislation, called a statute, is intended to address a specific subject, like how we drive a car or how houses are built, where and when we can fish or hunt, what companies can do, and how schools, hospitals and the post office work. Legislation governs how we interact with each other and implements government policy. | Both the Parliament of Canada and the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia have the power to make laws in their different areas of authority. This kind of law is called legislation, and each piece of legislation, called a statute, is intended to address a specific subject, like how we drive a car or how houses are built, where and when we can fish or hunt, what companies can do, and how schools, hospitals and the post office work. Legislation governs how we interact with each other and implements government policy. | ||
Government can also make regulations for a particular piece of statute that might contain important additional rules or say how the legislation is to be interpreted. The big difference between legislation and regulations is that legislation is publicly debated and voted on by the members of Parliament or the Legislative Assembly. Regulations are made by government without the necessity of a parliamentary vote, and don't get much publicity as a result. | Government can also make regulations for a particular piece of statute that might contain important additional rules or say how the legislation is to be interpreted. The big difference between legislation and regulations is that legislation is publicly debated and voted on by the members of Parliament or the Legislative Assembly. Regulations are made by government without the necessity of a parliamentary vote, and often don't get much publicity as a result. | ||
Because statutes and regulations have such a big impact on how we live our lives, they are relatively easy to find and relatively easy to understand. Unlike the common law, legislation is written down and organized. All of the current federal statutes can be found on the [http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/ | Because statutes and regulations have such a big impact on how we live our lives, they are relatively easy to find and relatively easy to understand. Unlike the common law, legislation is written down and organized. All of the current federal statutes can be found on the website of the [http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/ Department of Justice]. All of the current provincial statutes can be found on the [http://www.bclaws.ca/EPLibraries/bclaws_new/content?xsl=/templates/toc.xsl/group=A/lastsearch=/ BC Laws] website run by the Queen's Printer. | ||
[http://www.canlii.org CanLII | [http://www.canlii.org CanLII] also posts all current federal and provincial laws. It has the advantage of letting you see older versions of some laws, and you can search for cases that refer to specific statutes or regulations. You can also find the old ''Family Relations Act'' on CanLII, which you won't be able to find on the BC Laws website. | ||
===The division of powers=== | ===The division of powers=== | ||