Abstract
The enforcement of the law is problematic. If an infringement of a legal rule occurs, it does not follow that the violator will be penalised automatically—someone must take the initiative and activate the legal process.1 Basically, a legal system acquires its cases in two ways, through complaint, or through its own initiative.2 Although the entrepreneurial role of citizens is most obvious in the civil law, where they must initiate legal proceedings, it is of inestimable importance for agencies enforcing the criminal law. Studies of the police have demonstrated that except for a few areas, such as the work of vice squads or traffic patrols, the criminal law is largely activated by complaint. Enforcement agencies initiate action against wrongdoers but also rely on citizens who assist in enforcing the law by either complaining or by being witnesses to criminal offences. In addition, citizens are involved in the law-enforcement process when they complain about the quality and quantity of enforcement.
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Notes
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© 1979 Ross Cranston
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Cranston, R. (1979). Consumer Complaints, Agency Initiative and the Enforcement Process. In: Regulating Business. Oxford Socio-Legal Studies. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-03849-7_3
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