Law of Delkora
The law of Delkora is organized within the framework of a civil law legal system characterized by the codification of key legal concepts. The core elements of public law are codified in the Constitution, the Administrative Code, and the Penal Code. Private law is codified in the Civil Code and the Commercial Code. The Delkoran legal codes have influenced and been influenced by the legal systems of a number of other Eracuran countries.
History
In the years following the unification of the early Delkoran jarldoms, a class of legal scholars known as the Lovtællere (lit. "Law Tellers") emerged. Towns typically had a small council of Lovtællere, who were usually elders that were well-versed in regional practices and customs. Criminal trials were conducted by an assembly of all free people of a town, with the Lovtællere serving as impartial legal advisers. The Lovtællere passed down their knowledge orally to apprentices, although in some areas communes codified their laws in compendiums that were available to the public at the townhall.
Beginning around 985 CE, King Asmund I began consulting with the jarls of the Delkoran states to assemble a comprehensive codification of Delkoran customary law. The resulting document, the Lovbog (lit. "Law Book"), now housed at the Museum of National Heritage in Norenstal, provided a summary of major customs in all of the different regions of the Kingdom.
Public law
Constitutional law
The Delkoran Constitution (Delkorsk Grundlov) is the highest body of law in the Kingdom, and establishes the structures of government and their relations with each other, in addition to defining the limits of government power. Chapter 1 identifies the core principles of the Delkoran state, including its status as a federation, a constitutional monarchy, and a representative democracy based on popular sovereignty. This chapter also codifies the concept of the rule of law by stating that the law applies equally to all citizens and guaranteeing equal protection and due process.
Criminal law
The Penal Code (Straffekode) outlines different criminal offenses and sentencing guidelines. Offenses are divided into infractions (overtrædelser), which carry a maximum penalty of fines or community service; minor offenses (mindre lovovertrædelser), which carry a maximum penalty of 1 year imprisonment; and major offenses (større lovovertrædelser), which carry a maximum penalty of more than 1 year imprisonment. Criminal cases are investigated and prosecuted by prosecutors in various judicial districts, who are career civil servants. Trials are inquisitorial rather than adversarial, with the judge playing a central role in establishing the facts of the case. For cases involving a major offense, the trial is presided over by a panel of 3-5 judges. Juries are not used. The concept of bail does not exist in Delkoran law; defendants are automatically granted pre-trial release unless they are determined to be a threat to public safety or a flight risk.
The Delkoran Penal Code places a heavy emphasis on rehabilitation, with a preference for community service and supervised release programs instead of lengthy prison sentences. Delkoran prisons are known to be humane, with all but the most dangerous individuals able to move freely about the facility and become eligible for unsupervised weekend parole after serving a predetermined portion of their sentence. Prisoners are able to pursue an education, skills training, and in some cases part time employment while incarcerated. The Kingdom has one of the lowest incarceration rates in Tyran, at 21 per 100,000 residents, as well as one of the lowest recidivism rates.
Life imprisonment as a determinate sentence was abolished in 1994, although especially dangerous offenders can be sentenced to preventive detention in addition to their determinate sentence, which allows them to be held for as long as they are judged to be a threat to public safety. After the conclusion of the person’s determinate sentence, their status is reviewed to determine if they have been rehabilitated. If not, detention continues, with a mandatory review every subsequent year. The death penalty was abolished in 1973.
Administrative law
The Administrative Code (Administrativ Kode) governs matters related to public administration. Cases involving application of the code are handled by a separate system of administrative courts. The core principles of Delkoran administrative law include:
1. Statutory Limitation: Government bodies can only act where specifically authorized by law.
2. Presumption of Responsibility: Non-governmental individuals and entities are assumed to be able to take any action not explicitly forbidden by law.
3. Equality of Access: Government bodies cannot discriminate in the administration of government functions and services.
4. Civil Service Autonomy: Government ministries formulate policy, but administration of these policies is left to the civil service. Ministries cannot interfere in the administration of policy.
5. Right to Trial: Any person or entity affected by a decision of a government agency has a right to challenge the decision in an administrative court.
Private law
Civil law
The Civil Code (Civilret), adopted in 1835, is one of the oldest civil codes in Tyran and regulates relations between private persons. It is divided into 5 books:
1. Law of Persons (Personlov): Defines the concepts of natural and artificial personhood, agency, and capacity. Under Delkoran law, artificial persons have all of the responsibilities of natural persons, but only some of the rights.
2. Law of Relations (Forholdlov): Outlines family law, including marriage, divorce, legal custody, etc. For the purposes of Delkoran law, marriage is regarded as a purely civil institution, with the religious affiliations of the parties having no bearing on their legal rights and obligations. Polyamorous marriage is allowed with restrictions. Divorce is allowed on a no-fault basis.
3. Law of Things (Tinglov): Defines the concepts of private and personal property, with the former defined mostly as immovable property that imparts a higher standard of social responsibility. For example, a farmer's pasture is his private property, but he has a social responsibility to maintain the land and avoid over-grazing it. The law also identifies certain categories of things which cannot be converted into private property, such as large bodies of water, fishing stocks, and human genetic material, as well as the shoreline along oceans, rivers, and certain interior bodies of water up to the high water mark.
4. Law of Succession (Arvelov): Covers principles regarding estate, wills, probate, etc.
5. Law of Obligations (Forpligtelseslov): Outlines laws regarding contracts and other civil obligations.
Commercial Law
The Commercial Code (Kommerciel Kode) governs relations involving persons engaged in the exchange of goods and services for profit. The code also covers bankruptcy, intellectual property, and competition law. Businesses can incorporate under the code as one of five forms:
1. Limited Company (Aktieselskab): A stock-issuing company in which liability is limited to one’s share in the company. Subcategories include Public Limited Companies, in which stocks are available for public trading, and Private Limited Companies, in which stocks cannot be publicly-traded.
2. Conglomerate (Konglomerat): An enterprise formed by a merger of smaller enterprises. Conglomerates are closely regulated by the Federal Competition Enforcement Board, which frequently blocks proposed conglomerates and has the authority to order the dissolution of existing conglomerates deemed too big to fail.
3. Partnership (Parternskab): A joint venture consisting of two or more persons or businesses. Subcategories include Limited Partnerships and General Partnerships.
4. Sole Proprietorship (Enkeltmandsvirksomhed): An enterprise owned and operated by a single person in which the business entity does not have a separate legal identity.
5. Cooperative (Kooperativ): An enterprise owned and governed by all members of the cooperative. Subcategories include Worker Cooperatives, Consumer Cooperatives, Hybrid Cooperatives consisting of both the providers and consumers of a service, and Second Tier Cooperatives, in which the members of the cooperative are other cooperatives. Each member of a cooperative owns a single non-transferable share of its stock.
Procedural law
Private and penal procedural law is codified in the Code of Civil Procedures (Civile Procedurer Kode) and the Code of Penal Procedures (Straffeprocedurer Kode) respectively, which outline the processes by which cases are brought before the courts, the manner in which evidence is collected and facts are determined, the procedures judges should use to decide cases, legal remedies, and appeals processes.