Law is a system of rules that are enforced through social institutions to govern behaviour.

[2] Laws can

be made by legislatures through legislation (resulting in statutes), the executive
through decrees and regulations, or judges through binding precedent (normally in common
law jurisdictions). Private individuals can create legally binding contracts, including (in some
jurisdictions) arbitration agreements that may elect to accept alternative arbitration to the normal
court process. The formation of laws themselves may be influenced by a constitution (written or
unwritten) and the rightsencoded therein. The law shapes politics, economics, history and society in
various ways and serves as a mediator of relations between people.

A statute is a formal written enactment of a legislative authority that governs a state, city or country.
[1]

Typically, statutes command or prohibit something, or declare policy.[1] Statutes are laws made

by legislative bodies and distinguished fromcase law which is decided by courts,

and regulations issued by government agencies.[1] Statutes are sometimes referred to
as legislation or "black letter law." As a source of law, statutes are considered primary authority (as
opposed to secondary authority).
Ideally all statutes must be in harmony with constitutional law or the fundamental law of the land.

Statutory Construction
Definition
The process of determining what a particular statute means so that a court may apply it
accurately.

Overview
Any question of statutory interpretation begins with looking at the plain language of the
statute to discover its original intent. To discover a statute's original intent, courts first
look to the words of the statute and apply their usual and ordinary meanings.
If after looking at the language of the statute the meaning of the statute remains
unclear, courts attempt to ascertain the intent of the legislature by looking at legislative
history and other sources. Courts generally steer clear of any interpretation that would
create an absurd result which the Legislature did not intend.
A bill is a proposed law under consideration by a legislature.[1] A bill does not become law until it is
passed by the legislature and, in most cases, approved by the executive. Once a bill has been
enacted into law, it is called an Act or a statute.

Ambiguity is an attribute of any concept, idea, statement or claim whose meaning, intention or
interpretation cannot be definitively resolved according to a rule or process consisting of a finite
number of steps.
The concept of ambiguity is generally contrasted with vagueness. In ambiguity, specific and distinct
interpretations are permitted (although some may not be immediately apparent), whereas with
information that is vague, it is difficult to form any interpretation at the desired level of specificity.
Context may play a role in resolving ambiguity. For example, the same piece of information may be
ambiguous in one context and unambiguous in another.

Legislative power
The power of congress to make laws. Additionally, as an incident to that power,
congress can conduct hearings and investigations, consider those matters that form the
basis on which Congress may enact legislation, and perform other duties that are
"necessary and proper" to the enacting legislation pursuant to Article I, Section I.
See Congressional power.

Executive Power
Executive Power: An Overview
In its first three articles, the U.S. Constitution outlines the branches of the U.S.
Government, the powers that they contain and the limitations to which they must
adhere. Article II outlines the duties of the Executive Branch.
The President of the United States is elected to a four-year term by electors from every
state and the District of Columbia. The electors make up the Electoral College, which is
comprised of 538 electors, equal to the number of Representatives and Senators that
currently make up Congress. The citizens of each state vote for slates of electors who
then vote for the president on the prescribed day, selected by Congress.
In order to become president, a person must be a natural born citizen of the United
States. Naturalized citizens are ineligible, as are persons under the age of 35. In the
case that the president should be unable to perform his duties, be it by death or illness,
the vice-president becomes the president. Amendment XXII placed a two-term limit on
the presidential office.

The president:

is the Commander in Chief of the armed forces. He or she has the power to call
into service the state units of the National Guard, and in times of emergency
may be given the power by Congress to manage national security or the
economy.

has the power make treaties with Senate approval. He or she can also receive
ambassadors and work with leaders of other nations.

is responsible for nominating the heads of governmental departments, which the

Senate must then approve. In addition, the president nominates judges to
federal courts and justices to the United States Supreme Court.

can issue executive orders, which have the force of law but do not have to be
approved by congress.

can issue pardons for federal offenses.

can convene Congress for special sessions.

can veto legislation approved by Congress. However, the veto is limited. It is not
a line-item veto, meaning that he or she cannot veto only specific parts of
legislation, and it can be overridden by a two-thirds vote by Congress.

delivers a State of the Union address annually to a joint session of Congress.

War Powers
Congress holds the power to declare war. As a result, the president cannot declare war
without their approval. However, as the Commander in Chief of the armed forces, many
presidents have sent troops to battle without an official war declaration (ex. Vietnam,
Korea). The 1973 War Powers Act attempted to define when and how the president
could send troops to battle by adding strict time frames for reporting to Congress after
sending troops to war, in addition to other measures.

Nominations
The president is responsible for nominating candidates for the head positions of
government offices. A president will nominate cabinet officials and secretaries at the
beginning of his or her presidency and will fill vacancies as necessary. In addition, the
president is responsible for nominating Federal Circuit Court judges and Supreme Court
justices and choosing the chief justice. These nominations must be confirmed by the
Senate.

Executive Orders
In times of emergency, the president can override congress and issue executive orders
with almost limitless power. Abraham Lincoln used an executive order in order to fight
the Civil War, Woodrow Wilson issued one in order to arm the United States just before
it entered World War I, and Franklin Roosevelt approved Japanese internment camps
during World War II with an executive order. Many other executive orders are on file
and could be enacted at any time.

Pardons
The U.S. Constitution gives the president almost limitless power to grant pardons to
those convicted of federal crimes. While the president cannot pardon someone
impeached by Congress, he or she can pardon anyone else without any Congressional
involvement.

judicial power
Definition

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The constitutional authority vested in courts and judges to hear and

decide justiciable cases, and to interpret,
and enforce or void, statutes when disputes arise over their scope or constitutionality.
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1.

Executive orders have the full force of law when they take authority from a
legislative power which grants its power directly to the Executiveby the Constitution, or
are made pursuant to Acts of Congress that explicitly delegate to the President some
degree of discretionary power (delegated legislation).

A presidential proclamation is a statement issued by a president on a matter of public policy. They

are generally defined as, "The act of causing some state matters to be published or made generally

known. A written or printed document in which are contained such matters, issued by proper
authority; as the president's proclamation, the governor's, the mayor's proclamation." [1]

An Administrative Order is defined by the Florida Rules of Judicial Administration,

Rule 2.120 as:
"a directive necessary to administer properly the court's affairs but not inconsistent
with the constitution or with court rules and administrative orders entered by the
supreme court."
Under the authority of Chief Judge, granted by Rule 2.215 of the Florida Rules of
Judicial Administration, the 17th Judicial Circuit of Florida has established the
following categories of Administrative Orders