South Carolina's legal history spans back to the colonial period, well before the United States of America was formed. Our legal tradition began from the law in England, which is called English common law. Common law is the tradition of law based on court decisions rather than acts of legislature. Our common law tradition still exists and many of these laws have been adopted by the South Carolina General Assembly. When the General Assembly passes laws, they are called statutory laws, because they are passed as statutes. Both the federal government and the South Carolina government have the power to enact statutes.