Find Laws Find Lawyers Free Legal Forms USA State Laws
Home » Find Laws » Constitution Laws » US Constitution » An Overview of the Constitution Of The United States

An Overview of the Constitution Of The United States

Us Constitution

What is the Constitution? The United States Constitution is regarded as the supreme law of the United States. The United States Constitution is in essence, the framework for the organization of the United States government and more specifically for the relationship of the federal government with its states and citizens of the country. The Constitution, which was drawn up by the founding fathers of the United States following the Revolutionary War, created the three branches (the legislature, the bicameral Congress; an executive branch which is led by the President; a judicial branch headed by the Supreme Court) of the United States Federal Government. In addition to the creation of such branches, the United States Constitution specifies powers and responsibilities to each branch. The United States Constitution reserves all unremunerated powers to the individual states and to the people of the nation; this relationship effectively established the democratic system of government in the United States. The United States Constitution was adopted on September 7, 1878 by the Constitutional Convention; the document was ratified by conventions in each U.S. state in the name “of the people of the United States.” The United States Constitution is the framework for which America’s society is based off of. The Constitution awards individual citizens of the United States with undeniable rights and privileges, in addition to separating the powers of the governing bodies. Furthermore, the United States constitution developed and organized the relationship between the federal government of the United States and the localized state governments that comprise the Union. As a result of this framework, a body of law is dedicated to the United States Constitution. Constitutional Law Constitutional law is the body of law which deals with distribution and exercise of government authority. All states in the United States possess some form of Constitution or at least a general law of the land that will consist of a variety of consensual legal issues. Such laws or rules may include statutory law, judge-made law, customary law or conventions. Constitutional laws govern the relationship between the legislature, the judiciary and the executive bodies within the governing system. One of the fundamental tasks of constitutional law is to indicate hierarchies and relationship of power. When a constitution establishes a federal state, the framework will identify the several levels of government which coexist with exclusive or shared areas of jurisdiction over the application of enforcement and lawmaking powers. In addition to the organization of governmental powers, a constitution will also govern the rights of the individual citizens against the state. All states and the federal government as a whole possess a codified constitution with a developed bill of rights. This section of the constitution establishes the individual citizen’s undeniable rights and liberties. Any issues where a governing body strips an individual of these rights may be evaluated in a court of law. The Rule of Law The Constitution possesses a doctrine known as the rule of law, which dictates the protocol for which governing bodies and their subsequent actions must be conducted. In essence, the Rule of law is the separation of powers between different governing bodies.

Related Articles

Link To This Page

Comments

Find an MA Lawyer
Guide to Finding a Lawyer
Tips