Getting started
Understanding legal areas
This page is a compact introduction to Switzerland’s Systematic Collection. It is intended to help newcomers see the collection not as an endless wall of text but as an organised orientation system.
Mindset
Laws are rarely isolated texts. They form a network of topics, responsibilities, articles, references, exceptions and versions.
Structure
SR numbers, legal areas and taxonomy paths are like signposts: they do not explain everything, but they help with classification.
Boundary
rechtundgesetz.ch provides orientation. The official publications and the application of the law in the individual case remain authoritative.
What is the SR?
SR stands for Systematic Collection of Federal Law. It organises Swiss law thematically and numerically. An SR number is therefore more than a technical identifier: it provides an initial indication of where an enactment sits in the legal system.
Examples: the Federal Constitution is at SR 101, the Civil Code at SR 210, the Code of Obligations at SR 220 and the Criminal Code at SR 311.0. These numbers already show that the collection is organised systematically rather than alphabetically.
How is it structured?
It is easier to get started if the collection is viewed in levels:
- Legal area: broad thematic classification, for example state, civil law, criminal law, economy or international law.
- Enactment: a specific act, ordinance, treaty or other legal text.
- Article: the smaller, citable building blocks within an enactment.
- Paragraphs, letters and numbers: the fine structure containing conditions, exceptions and lists.
- Final and transitional provisions: rules on when and how an enactment applies or was amended.
Many misunderstandings arise when one starts directly with an individual article and ignores the context of the enactment. That is why rechtundgesetz.ch places emphasis on navigation, breadcrumbs, context cards and clear links.
What is a taxonomy?
A taxonomy is an organised thematic structure. On this website it mainly means a readable map through legal areas, sub-areas and the associated enactments.
Important: a taxonomy is not a legal assessment and not official legal information. It is a navigation tool. It helps to find related texts, see connections and avoid immediately getting lost in a long list of results.
National law
Entry point into the national SR systematics of Swiss federal law.
International law
Entry point into treaties, agreements and international legal foundations of Switzerland.
Federal acts
Alphabetical overview of imported federal acts with abbreviation and SR number.
Ordinances
Alphabetical overview of imported ordinances with abbreviation and SR number.
How should a legal page be read?
A good starting point is not to try to understand every word immediately. A short orientation is more useful:
- What kind of enactment is this? An act, ordinance, treaty or another legal text?
- What is its SR number? The number shows its systematic classification.
- Which version applies? Law changes; date and version matter.
- Which article is relevant? Individual articles must be read in the context of the whole enactment.
- Are there references? Many rules only work together with other articles or enactments.
Key terms explained briefly
- SR
- Systematic Collection of Federal Law. The thematically organised collection of Swiss law.
- Enactment
- Umbrella term for a legal text, for example an act, ordinance or treaty.
- Act
- Legal text containing fundamental rules, generally adopted by Parliament.
- Ordinance
- Specifies acts and often regulates details of implementation.
- Article
- Citable section of an enactment, often further divided into paragraphs, letters or numbers.
- Final provisions
- Rules on entry into force, transition, amendment or repeal.
- Reference
- Reference to other articles, enactments or external foundations.
- Taxonomy
- Navigation structure that connects legal areas and content thematically.
- Fedlex
- Official federal platform for publications and legal texts.
- Not official
- rechtundgesetz.ch helps with understanding and finding. The official publication remains authoritative.
Next useful step
If you are new to the topic, first make a broad distinction between national law and international law . Federal acts, ordinances and search then help you continue in a targeted way.