Editing Social science (section)

===Law===
{{Main|Law|Outline of law}}
[[File:Microcosm of London Plate 058 - Old Bailey edited.jpg|thumb|right|A trial at a criminal court, the [[Old Bailey]] in London]]
The social science of law, jurisprudence, in common parlance, means a rule that (unlike a rule of [[ethics]]) is capable of enforcement through institutions.<ref name="Crimes Against Humanity"/> However, many laws are based on [[norm (philosophy)|norms]] accepted by a community and thus have an ethical foundation. The study of law crosses the boundaries between the social sciences and humanities, depending on one's view of research into its objectives and effects. Law is not always enforceable, especially in the international relations context. It has been defined as a "system of rules",<ref name="hhc"/> as an "interpretive concept"<ref name="rdl"/> to achieve justice, as an "authority"<ref name="jra"/> to mediate people's interests, and even as "the command of a sovereign, backed by the threat of a sanction".<ref name="jap"/> However one likes to think of law, it is a completely central social institution. Legal policy incorporates the practical manifestation of thinking from almost every social science and the humanities. Laws are politics, because politicians create them. Law is philosophy, because moral and ethical persuasions shape their ideas. Law tells many of history's stories, because statutes, case law and codifications build up over time. And law is economics, because any rule about [[contract]], [[tort]], [[property law]], [[labour law]], [[company law]] and many more can have long-lasting effects on the distribution of wealth. The noun ''law'' derives from the [[Old English language|Old English]] {{lang|ang|lagu}}, meaning something laid down or fixed<ref>see [http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=law&searchmode=none ''Etymonline Dictionary'']</ref> and the adjective ''legal'' comes from the [[Latin]] word {{lang|la|lex}}.<ref>see [http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/legal ''Merriam-Webster's Dictionary'']</ref>