Every statute addresses both the public and the officials who enforce it

Evidence

Every statute, then, has a double message. In the first place, the statute delivers to the public (or some part of it) a statement of dos or don’ts, or rights and privileges. In the second place, the statute also contains a message to some legal authority, giving instructions about car­ rying out the law. The second message may be, and often is, implicit; the statute does not necessarily say it in so many words. — Lawrence M. Friedman and Grant M. Hayden, American Law, 483

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: The social forces pushing a statute explain its draftsmanship and form — Lawrence M. Friedman and Grant M. Hayden, American Law: An Introduction, 482