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Shireroth has three levels of law: the Charter, Kaiserial decrees, and acts of the Landsraad. There is something of a tangled hierarchy among these groups - although the Kaiser cannot make a decree contradicting the charter, he can change or even revoke the Charter by decree! The acts of the Landsraad, as compiled in the Lawbook, are at the lowest level of the hierarchy, but they are also the most numerous. The Charter is a sort of constitution by which Shireroth is run, although it was compiled only fairly recently as a formalization of government procedures used for many years. Only the Kaiser can edit the Charter, and even him only by decree. There have been 179 Kaiserial decrees as of May 25th, 2005. Very rarely do these decrees contradict the Landsraad or lay down laws that would not be passed otherwise - more often they are made to reinforce Landsraad decrees or to make common-sense pronouncements not worth the Landsraad's time to debate. Certain functions of the Kaisership also require decrees - for example, appointing an heir. The Lawbook was compiled in October 2003 as a compilation of existing Landsraad laws, and all new acts must be in the form of Lawbook amendments. It is maintained by the Praetor on a regular basis. |
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