With the launch of the We Explain the Law platform, which we are extremely happy about, we are publishing information in this article on how to properly use the platform.
Reading the law may seem difficult because legal texts change many times, and the documents themselves are organized hierarchically - from more important to less significant.
are passed by parliament (the legislative power) and introduce new laws or change them at the highest level of the legal hierarchy (above them are the Constitution and EU and international law, with which they must comply). These can be new documents or updates to existing ones.
are lower-level documents that implement the details of acts. They cannot change the rights introduced by acts, but they can specify their practical application. They are usually issued by the government.
are official publications of legal texts that most often contain the so-called consolidated text of an act, i.e., its version updated with all changes up to a specific date.
Imagine an act that was passed in 1994. Since then, it has been amended more than a dozen times. To find out what rights have been introduced/changed in it, you can:
1. Read the original act and all subsequent amendments separately (which is very difficult and time-consuming), or
2. Refer to the consolidated text - i.e., the version of the act containing all changes in one document.
Note: the consolidated text does not include changes that were passed after its publication. Therefore, to be sure you are reading current law, you need to check the publication date of the consolidated text and then look for any amendments that came into force later.
