Where do you get your laws from?

Answer 1

Most laws are derived from earlier laws or borrowed from another jurisdiction. For example, most criminal law is based on religious laws from antiquity. Another example is online privacy laws in the United States. Most states use other state's laws as a basis to work from with California being a leader in the area.

When new laws are created without such a basis, they are often the product of a community movement. In a state context, laws are introduced through legislators, who work in conjunction with lobbyists or other groups to craft the wording of the proposed legislation.

Added: The above answer is assumed to be correct for so-called "democratic" countries where the will of the people of the people is reflected in their elected legislative bodies.