Criminal law

The corpus of laws that deal specifically with criminal activity is referred to as "criminal law." It prohibits behaviour that is considered to be dangerous, hurtful, or in any other way threatening to the property, health, safety, and moral welfare of individuals, including oneself. The majority of criminal law is codified into statutes, which is to say that legislative bodies are responsible for writing most of these laws. The criminal justice system is responsible for both punishing and rehabilitating those who break the law.

In contrast to civil law, which places more of a focus on the settlement of disputes and the financial recompense of victims rather than on the rehabilitative or corrective aspects of criminal law, local jurisdictions have developed their own systems of criminal law.

Criminal procedure is a codified official activity that authenticates the fact that a crime was committed and permits the offender to be treated in a manner that is either punitive or rehabilitative. Criminal procedure is also known as the legal process.