Institutions of Law marks the long awaited definitive statement of Sir Neil MacCormick's distinctive theory of law as 'institutional normative order'. It takes account of recent developments in the sociology of law to provide a rigorous analysis of the role of law in our society and shows how law creates the conditions for social peace and a thriving economy. In doing so, Institutions of Law fills the need for a twenty-first century introduction to legal theory, such as was achieved in the last century by H.L.A. Hart's The Concept of Law.