1|Page
CRIM 467 EXAM 1 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
2025
What is common law? - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔Court
decisions or precedents, law made by judges through
court decisions.
True or false, most law schools focus more on issues and
common law, less on people or "society" of law. It could
be beneficial for them to teach this more. - ...ANSWER...
✔ ✔True
Why study law? - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔1. Determine
what the law is.
2. Determine morality of law.
3. Determine effective responses to social issues.
4. Determine is positive law complies with natural law.
Who determines what the law is? - ...ANSWER... ✔
✔Lawyers, judges, law students.
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Who determines the morality of the law? - ...ANSWER...
✔ ✔Legal philosophers.
Who determines effective responses to social issues? -
...ANSWER... ✔ ✔Politicians.
Who determines if positive law complies with natural
law? - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔Legl theologians.
What is positive law? - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔Written, on
the books law, manmade law. Statutes, case law.
What is natural law? - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔Law of
human rights, law of god, morals principles. "God-
made".
True or false, law usually lags behind society? -
...ANSWER... ✔ ✔True
Why do sociologists study law? - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔•
To understand why societies have law
• To understand what purposes and functions law fulfills
in society
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• To understand how law impacts society and vice versa•
To understand what institutions societies create to make,
enforce, and interpret the law
• To understand how the law evolves as societies evolve
• To understand how law behaves
• To understand how and why the law in action differs
from the law on the books
• To understand law as a social fact apart from its
morality
Why do institutions use the law? - ...ANSWER... ✔
✔1. How does law evolve?
2. How does law behave?
3. Why does de facto law differ from de jure law?
4. Understand law as a social fact, objectively?
True or false, sociologists are more theoretical when it
comes to the law. - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔True.
Why is there a friction between lawyers and
sociologists? - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔1. Different
languages, legal vs statistics.
2. Different methodologies, legal vs social science.
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3. Different objectives, pragmatic vs theoretical.
4. "Law" vs "law", single laws vs the concept of law.
True or false, the states cannot deny rights given to
individuals by the federal government. - ...ANSWER...
✔ ✔True, states can only give more rights, not less.
True or false, many legal theologians like MLK say
natural law supersedes common law, but others
disagree? - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔True
True or false, we must remain wary of natural law. It can
be used for evil. - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔True
What is De Jure law? What is De Facto Law. -
...ANSWER... ✔ ✔De Jure: Law as it is written.
De Facto: Law as it is enforced.
True or false, there is often a difference between De
Jure and De Facto law? - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔True
What is the concept of police discretion? - ...ANSWER...
✔ ✔Affects the difference between De Jure and De
CRIM 467 EXAM 1 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
2025
What is common law? - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔Court
decisions or precedents, law made by judges through
court decisions.
True or false, most law schools focus more on issues and
common law, less on people or "society" of law. It could
be beneficial for them to teach this more. - ...ANSWER...
✔ ✔True
Why study law? - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔1. Determine
what the law is.
2. Determine morality of law.
3. Determine effective responses to social issues.
4. Determine is positive law complies with natural law.
Who determines what the law is? - ...ANSWER... ✔
✔Lawyers, judges, law students.
,2|Page
Who determines the morality of the law? - ...ANSWER...
✔ ✔Legal philosophers.
Who determines effective responses to social issues? -
...ANSWER... ✔ ✔Politicians.
Who determines if positive law complies with natural
law? - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔Legl theologians.
What is positive law? - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔Written, on
the books law, manmade law. Statutes, case law.
What is natural law? - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔Law of
human rights, law of god, morals principles. "God-
made".
True or false, law usually lags behind society? -
...ANSWER... ✔ ✔True
Why do sociologists study law? - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔•
To understand why societies have law
• To understand what purposes and functions law fulfills
in society
,3|Page
• To understand how law impacts society and vice versa•
To understand what institutions societies create to make,
enforce, and interpret the law
• To understand how the law evolves as societies evolve
• To understand how law behaves
• To understand how and why the law in action differs
from the law on the books
• To understand law as a social fact apart from its
morality
Why do institutions use the law? - ...ANSWER... ✔
✔1. How does law evolve?
2. How does law behave?
3. Why does de facto law differ from de jure law?
4. Understand law as a social fact, objectively?
True or false, sociologists are more theoretical when it
comes to the law. - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔True.
Why is there a friction between lawyers and
sociologists? - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔1. Different
languages, legal vs statistics.
2. Different methodologies, legal vs social science.
, 4|Page
3. Different objectives, pragmatic vs theoretical.
4. "Law" vs "law", single laws vs the concept of law.
True or false, the states cannot deny rights given to
individuals by the federal government. - ...ANSWER...
✔ ✔True, states can only give more rights, not less.
True or false, many legal theologians like MLK say
natural law supersedes common law, but others
disagree? - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔True
True or false, we must remain wary of natural law. It can
be used for evil. - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔True
What is De Jure law? What is De Facto Law. -
...ANSWER... ✔ ✔De Jure: Law as it is written.
De Facto: Law as it is enforced.
True or false, there is often a difference between De
Jure and De Facto law? - ...ANSWER... ✔ ✔True
What is the concept of police discretion? - ...ANSWER...
✔ ✔Affects the difference between De Jure and De
