Primary sources come directly from which origin?

Primary sources come directly from which origin?

• A. Law-making body
• B. Court opinions
• C. News articles
• D. Legal dictionaries

Answer: (A)

Primary sources are the actual laws and legal rules as written by the authority that creates them. The origin that directly produces these rules is the law-making body, such as a legislature, which enacts statutes and constitutional provisions. These materials are the primary sources because they constitute the law itself, not commentary about it. News articles and legal dictionaries, by contrast, explain, interpret, or summarize the law and are considered secondary sources. Court opinions are also primary sources in the sense that they are official decisions, but they come from the judiciary and interpret existing law rather than create it; this item focuses on where the law originates, which is the law-making body.

Primary sources are the actual laws and legal rules as written by the authority that creates them. The origin that directly produces these rules is the law-making body, such as a legislature, which enacts statutes and constitutional provisions. These materials are the primary sources because they constitute the law itself, not commentary about it. News articles and legal dictionaries, by contrast, explain, interpret, or summarize the law and are considered secondary sources. Court opinions are also primary sources in the sense that they are official decisions, but they come from the judiciary and interpret existing law rather than create it; this item focuses on where the law originates, which is the law-making body.