[wd_asp id=1]
In this lesson, you will learn about statutes, codes, and rules. You will also learn the difference between substantive and procedural laws, along with the statute of limitations using relatable examples.
Laws – Rules that govern behavior.
Characteristics of laws
- Government defined
- Provided guidance
- Written by a governing body
Substantive Laws
- Governs rights and responsibilities
- Tells us how to behave
- Goes to the merits of a case
Procedural Laws
- Rules that enforce substantive laws
- Rules that apply substantive laws
- Standardized rules of litigation
Transcript
Statutes codes and rules are laws that the society recognizes as governing or guiding behavior. They are defined in writing by a government body like Congress or a legislature.
There are two main types of laws: substantive and procedural.
Substantive laws govern our rights and the things we can and cannot do. They tell us how to behave and go to the merits of a case. Procedural laws are the rules for enforcing and applying substantive laws and for making litigation standardized.
Neither is more important than the other. But it hurts your case if you go to court on a motion to dismiss where you need to argue procedure and attempt to argue substance.
Loss defining negligence, debt collection, bankruptcy, an immigration, or substantive, a statute of limitations. Rules about filing and formatting briefs are procedural.
Let\’s look at some examples of laws and how they might apply in certain situations.
A plaintiff misses the due date for filing his complaint. The defendant moves to dismiss because the statute of limitations for filing has passed. The statute of limitations is a procedural rule. Because it doesn\’t go to the merits of a case, and it sets out a rule for filing documents. In short, it makes the litigation process easier for the Courtroom5 defendant files a motion to dismiss for lack of process because a plaintiff leaves out the address of his own attorney.
What makes the law procedural? It doesn\’t go to the merits of the case. It\’s a rule for the proper way to serve a summons, and it makes litigation efficient.
Procedural laws can frustrate pro se litigants. That\’s understandable.
Who cares whether some attorney\’s address is on a document when you\’ve got broken leg from being run over by a truck. But if you ignore procedure, you can be out of the case long before you get to its merits. Pay attention to the kind of documents the other side is smiling and the laws they rely on.
Now we get to the meat of the matter, a substantive rule, a plaintiff file suit against a defendant for trespassing on a parcel of his land. The defendant answers claiming that an easement gives him the right of way to the parcel. The statute is substantive because it goes to the merit of the case. It tells people how to behave in everyday life. Specifically, it addresses the question of whether the defendant has a right to cross a particular parcel of land.
In another scenario, a plaintiff\’s suits for negligence after the defendant throws a lit cigarette into a trash can setting the fire that destroyed plaintiff\’s barn.
The negligence statute goes to the merit of the case. The entire lawsuit is about whether the defendant was negligent and if so, whether plaintiff has a right to sue.