What are the sources of the American Law?

• A. The English common law, the US constitution, Statutes, Court decisions
• B. The U.S. Constitution only
• C. English common law only
• D. Statutes only

Answer: (A)

American law comes from several sources that work together. The U.S. Constitution sets the framework for government, protects fundamental rights, and is the supreme law that all other laws must follow. Statutes are the rules created by legislatures—federal Congress and state legislatures—that provide specific prohibitions, duties, and procedures. Court decisions, or case law, interpret the Constitution and statutes and establish binding rules through judicial opinions, creating precedents that guide future rulings. The English common law tradition provides the historical backbone and a pool of general legal principles that influenced early American law and continues to inform legal reasoning, especially in areas not fully settled by statutes. Because the Constitution stands above all, statutes and court decisions must align with it, and judges use both statutes and established precedents to resolve disputes. In short, American law draws on the English common law heritage, the U.S. Constitution, statutes, and court decisions.