Law of North Carolina

Last updated

The law of North Carolina consists of several levels, including constitutional, statutory, regulatory, case law, and local law.

Contents

Sources

The Constitution of North Carolina is the foremost source of state law. Legislation is enacted by the General Assembly, published in the North Carolina Session Laws, and codified in the North Carolina General Statutes. State agency regulations (sometimes called administrative law) are published in the North Carolina Register and codified in the North Carolina Administrative Code. North Carolina's legal system is based on common law, which is interpreted by case law through the decisions of the Supreme Court and Court of Appeals, which are published in the North Carolina Reports and North Carolina Court of Appeals Reports, respectively. Counties, cities, towns, and villages may also promulgate local ordinances.

Constitution

North Carolina has had three constitutions, adopted in 1776, 1868, and 1971, respectively. Like the federal constitution does for the federal government, the North Carolina Constitution both provides for the structure of the North Carolina government and enumerates rights which the North Carolina government may not infringe. [1]

Because "[t]the North Carolina Constitution expresses the will of the people of [the] State," it is "the supreme law of the land." [2] "If there is a conflict between" a state statute and the North Carolina Constitution, the constitution controls because it "is the superior rule of law in that situation." [3] The Supreme Court of North Carolina has the “power and . . . duty to determine whether challenged acts of the General Assembly violate the constitution,” [4] by “constru[ing] and appl[ying] the provisions of” that document “with finality.” To determine whether a statute violates the North Carolina Constitution, a court looks to the text and “historical context” of the “applicable constitutional provision” and subsequent court decisions interpreting that text and history. Laws passed by the General Assembly are presumptively constitutional and will be held unconstitutional only when “the constitutional violation is plain and clear.” [5]

Regulations

Pursuant to certain statutes, state agencies have promulgated regulations, also known as administrative law. The North Carolina Register includes information about state agency rules, administrative rules, executive orders and other notices, and is published bimonthly. [6] The State of North Carolina Administrative Code (NCAC) contains all the rules adopted by the state agencies and occupational licensing boards in North Carolina. [6] Both are compiled and published by the Rules Division of the North Carolina Office of Administrative Hearings. [7]

Case law

The legal system of North Carolina is based on the common law. Like all U.S. states except Louisiana, North Carolina has a reception statute providing for the "reception" of English law. All statutes, regulations, and ordinances are subject to judicial review. Pursuant to common law tradition, the courts of North Carolina have developed a large body of case law through the decisions of the North Carolina Supreme Court and North Carolina Court of Appeals.

The decisions of the Supreme Court and Court of Appeals are published in the North Carolina Reports and North Carolina Court of Appeals Reports, respectively. [8] Opinions are first published online on filing day as slip opinions, and may be withdrawn or corrected until the mandate issues 20 days later. [8] Slip opinions are then printed with headnotes and other finding aids in soft-bound books called Advance Sheets and online, and are given citations to the official reports. Advance sheets are then compiled and printed in the hard-bound volumes of the North Carolina Reports and North Carolina Court of Appeals Reports, respectively. [8] Trial court opinions are often neither written nor published. [9]

Local ordinances

Local governments are created by acts of the General Assembly, which define their boundaries and approve their charters. [10] These charters can be changed by legislative action or, in certain cases, by home rule amendments adopted by the local governments. [10] Local government charters and legislative amendments can be found in the North Carolina Session Laws, and all home rule changes must be filed with the Secretary of State and the Legislative Library. [10]

See also

Topics

Other

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Constitutional Council (France)</span> National constitutional ruling body of the French Republic

The Constitutional Council is the highest constitutional authority in France. It was established by the Constitution of the Fifth Republic on 4 October 1958 to ensure that constitutional principles and rules are upheld. It is housed in the Palais-Royal, Paris. Its main activity is to rule on whether proposed statutes conform with the Constitution, after they have been voted by Parliament and before they are signed into law by the President of the Republic, or passed by the government as a decree, which has law status in many domains, a right granted to the government under delegation of Parliament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Carolina Attorney General</span> Attorney general for the U.S. state of North Carolina

The attorney general of North Carolina is a statewide elected office in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The attorney general is a constitutional officer responsible for representing state agencies in legal matters, supplying other state officials and prosecutors with legal advice, and leading the North Carolina Department of Justice. The incumbent attorney general, Josh Stein, assumed office on January 1, 2017. The position of attorney general dates back to North Carolina's colonial history. North Carolina's 1776 constitution established the office as an official appointed by the North Carolina General Assembly. The state's 1868 constitution made the attorney general an elected executive official with their duties prescribed by law. Since 1971, the officer has sat on the North Carolina Council of State.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Supreme court</span> Highest court in a jurisdiction

In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, and highcourt of appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of a supreme court are not subject to further review by any other court. Supreme courts typically function primarily as appellate courts, hearing appeals from decisions of lower trial courts, or from intermediate-level appellate courts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Law of Louisiana</span> State law based on French and Spanish legal codes, as well as American/British common law

Law in the state of Louisiana is based on a more diverse set of sources than the laws of the other 49 states of the United States. Private law—that is, substantive law between private sector parties, principally contracts and torts—has a civil law character, based on French and Spanish codes and ultimately Roman law, with some common law influences. Louisiana's criminal law largely rests on American common law. Louisiana's administrative law is generally similar to the administrative law of the federal government and other states. Louisiana's procedural law is generally in line with that of other U.S. states, which in turn is generally based on the U.S. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Law of California</span> Overview of the law of the U.S. state of California

The law of California consists of several levels, including constitutional, statutory, and regulatory law, as well as case law. The California Codes form the general statutory law, and most state agency regulations are available in the California Code of Regulations.

The law of Florida consists of several levels, including constitutional, statutory, and regulatory law, as well as case law and local law. The Florida Statutes form the general statutory law of Florida.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Government of North Carolina</span> Government of the U.S. state of North Carolina

The government of North Carolina is divided into three branches: executive, legislative, and judicial. These consist of the Council of State, the bicameral legislature, and the state court system. The Constitution of North Carolina delineates the structure and function of the state government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Politics of France</span> Political system of France

The politics of France take place with the framework of a semi-presidential system determined by the French Constitution of the French Fifth Republic. The nation declares itself to be an "indivisible, secular, democratic, and social Republic". The constitution provides for a separation of powers and proclaims France's "attachment to the Rights of Man and the principles of National Sovereignty as defined by the Declaration of 1789".

The law of Colorado consists of several levels, including constitutional, statutory, regulatory, local, and case law. The Colorado Revised Statutes form the general statutory law.

The law of Virginia consists of several levels of legal rules, including constitutional, statutory, regulatory, case law, and local laws. The Code of Virginia contains the codified legislation that define the general statutory laws for the Commonwealth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Law of New York (state)</span> Overview of the law of the U.S. state of New York

The law of New York consists of several levels, including constitutional, statutory, regulatory and case law, and also includes local laws, ordinances, and regulations. The Consolidated Laws form the general statutory law.

The law of Texas is derived from the Constitution of Texas and consists of several levels, including constitutional, statutory, regulatory law, as well as case law and local laws and regulations.

The law of Illinois consists of several levels, including constitutional, statutory, and regulatory law, as well as case law and local law. The Illinois Compiled Statutes (ILCS) form the general statutory law.

The law of Pennsylvania consists of several levels, including constitutional, statutory, regulatory and case law. The Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes form the general statutory law.

The law of Ohio consists of several levels, including constitutional, statutory, and regulatory, local and common law. The Ohio Revised Code forms the general statutory law.

The law of the U.S. state of Georgia consists of several levels, including constitutional, statutory, and regulatory law, as well as case law and local law. The Official Code of Georgia Annotated forms the general statutory law.

The law of Michigan consists of several levels, including constitutional, statutory, regulatory and case law. The Michigan Compiled Laws form the general statutory law.

The law of New Jersey consists of several levels, including constitutional, statutory, regulatory, case law, and local law.

The law of Massachusetts consists of several levels, including constitutional, statutory, regulatory, case law, and local ordinances. The General Laws of Massachusetts form the general statutory law.

The law of Washington consists of several levels, including constitutional, statutory, regulatory and case law, as well as local ordinances. The Revised Code of Washington forms the general statutory law.

References

  1. ↑ Orth, John. "Constitution, State". NCpedia. State Library of North Carolina. Retrieved 17 May 2019.
  2. ↑ In re Martin, 295N.C.291 , 299(N.C.1978).
  3. ↑ Adams v. N.C. Dep’t of Nat. & Econ. Res.,295N.C.683, 690(N.C.1978).
  4. ↑ Cooper v. Berger,822S.E.2d286, 291(N.C.2018).
  5. ↑ State ex rel. McCrory v. Berger,368N.C.633, 639(N.C.2016).
  6. 1 2 "North Carolina State Statutes, County and Municipal Ordinances and Administrative Rules". University of North Carolina Kathrine R. Everett Law Library . Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  7. ↑ "NCOAH - Rules Division". North Carolina Office of Administrative Hearings . Retrieved 10 April 2014.
  8. 1 2 3 "Office of the North Carolina Appellate Reporter Home Page". North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts . Retrieved 10 April 2014.
  9. ↑ "Courts & Case Law - North Carolina Legal Research - Research Guides at East Carolina University Libraries". East Carolina University Libraries. Retrieved 10 April 2014.
  10. 1 2 3 Research Guides: Where to Find Local Government Charters, Ordinances, & Forms of Government (PDF), North Carolina General Assembly Research Division, retrieved 10 April 2014
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.