z601(at)anemicaardvark.co
Guest
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 Posted: Sat Jan 24, 2009 11:36 am Post subject: Rules vs laws (was: Re: Dutch XL crash findings) |
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> What law is it you would violate if you flew your plane over max gross
> weight?
One of the catch 22s about FARs is that they are rules, not laws. This may
seem trivial, but it was once explained to me that the differences are
significant:
1) Laws are passed by a legislative body, like Congress, a state legislature,
or a town body.
A) You can be either fined or sent to prison for violating a law.
B) Normal rights of appeal and jury trial apply.
C) There is normally a statute of limitations. E.G. if you did something a
stated number of years ago, and you have met certain other requirements, you
can no longer be prosecuted for the crime.
2) Rules are passed by government agencies, like the FAA, and the IRS.
A) You cannot be sent to prison for violating a rule, but you can be fined.
C) The normal rights of appeal and jury trial do not necessarily apply.
D) There is no statute of limitations on violating a rule. If they find out
about it 25 years later, in theory, you can still be fined.
In other words, although it is unlikely anybody would bother, anything you
confess to on this forum that is a violation of the FARs could be pursued,
and a fine could result. I would not loose a lot of sleep over this, but it
might be worth considering before posting.
What I'm passing along is what the FAA has told me. If you need specific legal
advice, I'm the wrong guy. In other words, the opinion expressed above is
that of the FAA, and not necessarily anyone in their right mind. 
--
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Do not archive.
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Jim B Belcher
BS, MS Physics, Math, Computer Science
A&P/IA
Retired aerospace technical manager
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