Sources of law:

According to Salmond there are two main sources of law:

1) Formal/Actual sources: the formal sources of law are
derived from the validity and origin of the law. Validity
means from where the law gets its validity while the origin
is meant to be the point from where the law came into
existence.
The formal sources of law vary from definition to
definition of the law. According to natural law definition,
morality and ethics will be the formal sources of law. In
Customary law, the behavior or conduct of the people
with each other will be its formal sources of law. in
accordance with the Austin’s positive school of thought,
legislation, monarch, or parliament would be the formal
sources of the law. While the internal willingness of
people, is also a formal source of law. In addition, judges’
perspective of the formal law sources would be the judicial
source.
2) Material Sources: according to material sources of law, the
law is derived from the matter not from the validity. It
provides us the content present in the law means what
does the law contain. The material sources has two types:
a) Legal material sources: these are the instruments or
the organs of the state. The legal material sources of
 the law are authoritative by which the legal rules are
created. The legal sources of law includes:
I. Legislation: This signifies the statutes of the law.
II. Custom: not all the customs are the sources of
law but the customs which are recognized and
acceptable by the law are actually the material
sources of law.
III. Precedents: statements of law, made in previous
authority of the superior Courts.
b) Historical Material sources: these are the sources
where, rules subsequently turned into legal principles.
The historical sources of law firstly are in an un-
authoritative form, which are not legally binding upon
the people. The Acts of the Parliament and the work of
Bentham are the example of the historical sources of
English law. The legal boundness of material historical
sources depends upon its acceptance by legislature
and judiciary. The historical sources of law are divided
into following two categories:
I. Religious and morality. The religious and morality
II. Literary source of law: the literary sources of law
are divided into further following types:
a) Commentaries: the commentaries sources are used
by the judges to justified and analyze the by reading
the comments of different jurists.
b) Doctrinal writings: all the theoretical work or the
principles of the jurists/ scholars/ advocates would
be the doctrinal writing. For example: the doctrine
of frustration, doctrine of privity etc in law of
contract. H.L.A hart’s pure theory of law and etc.
c) Academic writings and text books: the books or any
other academic writings by the professors and
students. These are not the actual and authoritative
books but can be accepted by the Courts. Example:
the book of jurisprudence, the legal ethics book etc.
d) Legal journals: these journals include all the law
related material/articles which are used by the
courts to get guidance and help in the judgment and
decisions.
e) Dissertation/thesis: the research of the scholars on
the law which are accepted by the law.
f) Obiter Dictum: judge's comments or remarks, in
passing, on a matter arising in a case before him
which does not require a decision.
g) Encyclopedias: it refers to the books of law or any
other sources of law from the information is
gathered or assembled. It contains useful
background information and provides many
references to relevant statutes and cases. For
 example: American jurisprudence and corpus
secundum etc.
KEETON’S CRITICISM: Keeton mainly critics the
unsatisfactory of the formal sources in the Salmond’s
classification of the sources of the law. He says that
sources of law are actually the material out of which
law is eventually fashioned. He gives his own
classification for the sources of law as follows:
a) Binding sources: the binding sources of law are
which obligated on the judge and he is not free in
their application; when practices are being
conducted by the people for a long time without any
interruption, so the customs become the binding
sources of law; legislation, judiciary and customary
law are the binding sources of law.
b) Persuasive sources: the persuasive source of law is
only applicable at the point where there are no
binding sources. The professional opinions and the
principle of morality and equity are the persuasive
sources of law.

LEGISLATION:
Broader sense perspective: it consist the declaration of
the rules of the competent authority, according to
Salmond.
Narrow/strict sense: legislation lying down on the
rules for the future without the reference of any actual
dispute. Rules which are enacted by the legislation and
by the subordinate legislation are laws.
Judgment law, regarding any dispute before the
judges in the court is not the legislation.
Widest sense: it includes any will be legislation; every
act of parliament will amount as the legislation except
those which are not the laws.
Types of legislation:
1) Supreme legislation: which proceeds from the
supreme power is the supreme law. It comes from
highest law making authority in Pakistan parliament
is the supreme legislation, in Saudi king, Brunei king.
If parliament enacts any statute nobody can repeal
it. But if some laws which violates the religious
values can be challenged. In England supreme
legislation cannot be challenged any court of law, if
follows Austin’s view of law. Then if Supreme Court
declares any law which is unconstitutional then it
will be amended.