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Elements of Legal Research
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B.B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) · Sem 1
2023 Mar Examination
munotes.in
Mumbai
B.B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) Sem 1 Elements of Legal Research 2023 Mar Question Paper with Solutions
First published on munotes.in on 2 November 2026.
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The question paper reproduced here is the paper as set by Karnataka State Law University at the 2023 Mar examination.
Contents
The questions below are the paper as Karnataka State Law University set it at the 2023 Mar examination, in the order it was set.
MarksPage
The Paper as Set
The questions in this volume are the questions asked at the 2023 Mar examination, reproduced as Karnataka State Law University set them, in the order it set them. Long reading passages are shortened to their first and last lines and our summary; the original paper prints them in full. Only the answers are ours. See the original question paper.
Duration 2½ hours · Total marks 70 · 12 questions answered
How to use this volume
Solve the paper first, under exam conditions and against the clock. Then read the answers here and mark your own. Reading a solution before attempting the question feels productive and teaches very little, because recognising an answer is not the same as being able to write one.
Q1Discuss the various types of law.[10]
Answer
For full marks, cover: Part A: what law is (the word's two senses; definitions of Austin, Holland and Salmond; Art. 13(3)(a)). Part B: the types of law in the wide sense (imperative, physical, natural or moral, customary, conventional, international, municipal); Salmond's common law and special law, with the five kinds of special law; the main divisions of municipal law; a table; a conclusion.
Part A: What is law
Two senses. In its widest sense, "law" means any rule of action. Scientists speak of the law of gravitation, and moralists of the moral law. In its legal sense, law means the rules made or recognised by the State and enforced by its courts. Law students study law in this second sense.
Definitions. Austin defined law as a command of the sovereign backed by a sanction. Holland defined it as "a general rule of external human action enforced by a sovereign political authority". Salmond described law as the rules recognised and acted on in courts of justice.
The Indian working definition. Article 13(3)(a) of the Constitution says "law" includes "any Ordinance, order, bye-law, rule, regulation, notification, custom or usage having in the territory of India the force of law".
Part B: Types of law in the wide sense
1. Imperative law. A rule of action imposed by an authority and enforced by a sanction. Austin's command theory treats all true law as imperative. The criminal law is the clearest example.
2. Physical or scientific law. A statement of what happens in nature, such as the law of gravitation. It describes; it does not command, and it cannot be broken.
3. Natural or moral law. The principles of right and wrong that reason or conscience reveals. Blackstone held that "no human laws are of any validity, if contrary to this." Indian courts apply its ideas as natural justice. In A.K. Kraipak v. Union of India, AIR 1970 SC 150, the Supreme Court said: "It is against all canons of justice to make a man judge in his own cause."
4. Customary law. Rules that grow from the long practice of a people and come to be accepted as binding. The Hindu Marriage Act 1955 recognises custom that, "having been continuously and uniformly observed for a long time, has obtained the force of law".
5. Conventional law. Rules that people create by agreement for themselves. Salmond wrote in 1902 that "Agreement is a law for the parties to it". The articles of a company and the terms of a partnership are examples.
6. International law. The rules that govern relations between States, based mainly on treaties and custom.
7. Municipal or civil law. The law of the land, applied by a State's courts within its territory. This is law in the strict legal sense.
Salmond's common law and special law
Salmond divided the whole body of a country's legal rules into two parts. Common law means "all those legal rules of which the courts will take judicial notice". The courts apply these as a matter of course. Special law consists of rules which, though true law, "must be specially proved" by the parties who rely on them. The test is judicial notice. "The general rule on the matter is that courts of justice know the law, but are ignorant of the facts."
Salmond listed five kinds of special law:
- Local customs, which have the force of law in a particular place.
- Mercantile customs, the law merchant.
- Private legislation, such as Acts for a particular company or locality.
- Foreign law, applied by the courts under private international law.
- Conventional law, which has its source in the agreement of those bound by it.
In India too, a party who relies on a local custom must plead and prove it.
The divisions of municipal law
Municipal law is further divided into public and private law, civil and criminal law, and substantive and procedural law. The Constitution and criminal law are public; contract and property are private. The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023 is substantive; the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 is procedural.
| Type | Nature | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Imperative | Command with sanction | Criminal law |
| Physical | Describes nature | Law of gravitation |
| Natural or moral | Principles of right | Natural justice |
| Customary | Long practice accepted as binding | Custom under HMA 1955 |
| Type | Nature | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Conventional | Made by agreement | Articles of a company |
| International | Between States | Treaties |
| Municipal | Law of the land | Constitution, BNS |
| Common / special (Salmond) | Judicially noticed / must be proved | Statute / local custom |
Conclusion. Law, in the legal sense, is the body of rules made or recognised by the State and enforced by its courts. Austin, Holland, Salmond and Article 13(3)(a) explain it in their own ways. In the wide sense, law includes imperative, physical, moral, customary, conventional, international and municipal law. Salmond's division into common law and special law shows that some true law must be proved before courts apply it. A student who knows the types of law can place any rule correctly.
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