Civics & Citizenship: Laws & Rules

For a community or society to work, it needs to have a level of structure that applies to everyone and is understood by everyone. Laws create that structure and regulate the way in which people, organisations and governments behave. A law is a rule that comes from a legitimate authority and applies to everyone. Laws are created to make sure that everyone understands what is expected of them as a member of society (their obligations) and what they can expect of others, including government (their rights). Read through this website to learn more.

Victoria's laws come from several different sources — the Australian Constitution, Victorian and federal legislation, and common law. Read through this website to learn more.

This fact sheet explains the law-making process in the Australian Parliament. It also describes where ideas for laws come from and the history of law-making in the Parliament.

About half of the total sitting time of the House is spent considering bills, that is, proposed laws. These range from comparatively minor proposals of an administrative nature to comprehensive initiatives of major social, economic or industrial significance. This infosheet describes how government bills, that is those proposed by Ministers, are considered and passed by the House.