By providing guidelines for conduct of the state and individuals, the legal acts create order and stability in social, economic, and political domains. Nowadays, there are different sources of laws in the United States, each of them is enacted to address specific issues occurring in the society. At the base of the sources of laws in the United States and most other jurisdictions are constitutional law, civil law, and criminal law.

Civil and criminal laws are different components of the legal system. Civil law explicates the rights and responsibilities that exist between entities in their interactions. On the other hand, criminal law defines what constitutes “wrong” against the state (Miller, 2014). Violation of provisions of criminal law carries penalties in the form of fines, incarceration or, in some cases, death. Conversely, violation of civil law attracts damage remedies for the entity whose rights are violated (Miller, 2014). Further, since a violation of criminal law amounts to an offense against the state, a criminal case is prosecuted by the government. On the other hand, a violation of civil law amounts to doing wrong against the rights of an individual. Therefore, the aggrieved individual but not the state has the onus to file a lawsuit against an offender. Thus, civil law and criminal law differ in terms of the nature of the issues they address and the process of their enforcement by courts.

Civil law and criminal law also differ in terms of the procedure followed during the prosecution stage. In view that the state has enormous power and resources when prosecuting crimes and since the punishments can be austere, there are procedural protections to preserve the rights of violators of criminal law (Miller, 2014). The state has the onus to adduce evidence that demonstrates to the court that a crime was indeed committed. In contrast, a plaintiff in a civil proceeding is only required to prove that his or her rights were violated by a preponderance of the evidence adduced before the court (Miller,2014). Accordingly, civil law and criminal law are different in terms of the weight of the burden of proof required to rule in favor of a plaintiff.

Constitutional law emanates from the federal and state constitutions. The federal constitution law establishes the Bill of Rights. The latter prevents the federal as well as state governments from violating individuals’ fundamental rights and freedoms, for example, the right to due process and freedom of speech and assembly (Legal Information Institute, n.d.). Further, the federal constitutional law creates the three branches of government: executive, legislature, and judiciary. It also stipulates the powers and responsibilities of each branch (Legal Information Institute, n.d.). Constitutional law is, therefore, the area of law that addresses issues to do with personal rights and responsibilities of individuals in their interaction with the government and separation of powers among the three branches of government.

Constitutional law, civil law, and criminal laws are interweave. Constitutional law must be observed in the creation of civil and criminal laws on all governmental levels. The Congress and state legislatures cannot pass laws that contravene constitutional limits (Beatty, Samuelson, Abril, 2016). In the enforcement of criminal law, the constitutional law through the Bill of Rights provides protections to crime suspects (Miller, 2014). Civil laws and criminal law can intersect in certain situations. For example, since the civil tort system gives a victim the right to bring a civil action for injuries inflicted by a party, it is possible for a fraud victim to press a civil lawsuit for a fraud, while the state brings criminal charges for the same fraud (Miller, 2014). Concisely, constitutional law provides restrictions in the formulation and enforcement of civil and criminal laws in cases where the rights of individuals are concerned.

The three sources of law are pertinent to the accounting discipline. The accounting practice is replete with acts or omissions that fall within the scopes of civil law or criminal law. For example, embezzlement of corporate funds and manipulation of accounting books to cover up the act are a white-collar crime (Miller, 2014). On the other hand, failure of an audit company to detect a material fraud that leads to losses to shareholders can amount to a civil liability if it is established that such an entity was negligent in the execution of its duties (Beatty et al., 2016). Like in all other cases, constitutional law is applicable to legal actions in the accounting field, whether civil or criminal, to the extent that it enumerates the rights of individuals in their relationships with the legal system. Therefore, savvy of what each of the three categories of law entails and instances where each law is relevant are instrumental for companies and accounting professionals.

Constitutional law, civil law, and criminal law are integral constituents of the legal system. The three differ in terms of the nature of the issues they address in the society as well as the procedure of their enforcement. Civil law defines the rights and responsibilities that exist between parties, while criminal law has to do with offenses against the society. Constitutional law is derived from the US Constitution. It is the area of law that enshrines the fundamental rights of individuals in their dealings with the state and separation of powers among the three arms of the government. In the accounting field, some offenses can lead to litigation under civil law or criminal law.

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