federal laws

Countrywide legal mandates

Federal laws are statutes enacted by a national government, as distinguished from state, provincial, or local laws.

In the United States, federal laws are passed by Congress and apply uniformly across all states: Federal laws on immigration supersede state regulations.

They typically govern matters of national concern—interstate commerce, national defense, civil rights—while leaving other matters to lower jurisdictions.

Opposites
jurisdictional level

federal lawslocal ordinances

Laws enacted by municipalities

municipal codes · state laws · county regulations · local regulations · city ordinances

legal formality

federal lawssocial norms

Shared behavioral expectations

informal rules · moral codes · cultural taboos · etiquette · gentlemen's agreements

source of authority

federal lawstribal law

Indigenous community legal system

religious law · natural law · moral codes · social norms · corporate policies

Family

laws, lawful, federal, federation, legality

Familiarity
Top 100,000
Profile
Mostly American · Timeless · Abstract · Everyday, not technical · Rated G