Article VI: Laws

Section 1: Principles

1. This Constitution establishes the principles upon which laws are based, thereby constraining what laws may exist. Actions by residents are lawful unless explicitly prohibited herein.
2. Laws shall define illegality and punishment as objectively and as clearly as reasonably possible.
3. Any person present within the State Territory is subject to its criminal laws, regardless of where an alleged offense occurred.

Section 2: Property rights

1. Because physical resources are scarce, conflicts may arise when individuals attempt mutually exclusive uses of the same resource. Property rights exist to prevent and resolve such conflicts.
2. All rights are property rights.
3. A property right is the right to exclude others from using a resource.
4. Every property right shall have exactly one owner. A purported property right shared by two or more Persons has no legal meaning and shall not be recognised or protected by the State.
5. Several Persons may each own a different contractual right concerning the same resource. Each such right shall have exactly one owner and shall not create shared ownership of the resource.
6. Persons who purport to acquire a property right jointly do not thereby acquire a property right. Unless ownership is assigned to one Person, the State shall not recognise the resource as having an owner or enforce any purported ownership claim concerning it.
7. Every person has an inalienable property right in their own body.
8. A Person may hold property rights over:
   • Physical objects
   • Digital keys, currency, or tokens stored in computing systems that enforce mutual exclusion
   • Areas of land defined by clear boundaries
9. There shall be no property rights over creations of the mind, as they are non‑scarce and do not inherently give rise to conflicts. Intellectual property rights such as trademarks, patents, or copyrights shall not exist.
10. Voluntary agreements that restrict the disclosure or use of information, such as non‑disclosure agreements (NDAs), are valid and enforceable, provided they do not impose obligations on non‑parties.
11. Legitimate acquisition of property rights occurs through:
    1. Homesteading: first use of an unowned resource in the commons, unless a law prohibits homesteading of that land within the State Territory.
    2. Production: creating new goods by transforming owned resources
    3. Voluntary transfer: receiving property by consent (e.g., trade, gift, inheritance)
    A resource in the commons cannot be claimed merely by decree; it must be appropriated through actual use.
12. Homesteading that blocks access between resources not owned by the homesteader (e.g., claiming “donut‑shaped” land) is prohibited.
13. Abandoned property returns to the commons and may be homesteaded by others.
14. Property rights may continue after death to respect mortal remains and uphold agreements such as wills, life insurance, or business contracts.

Section 3: Duty to warn or prevent harm

Residents are legally required to warn or prevent harm to others’ property only when:

1. Special relationships: A duty exists when there is a special relationship between the parties, such as parent‑child, employer‑employee, doctor‑patient, or innkeeper‑guest.
2. Creation of peril: If a person’s actions, even if non‑negligent at the time, create a situation of danger, they have a duty to remove the hazard or warn others.
3. Contractual obligation: Failure to act in accordance with contractual duties (e.g., lifeguard or security guard) constitutes breach of law.

These duties shall be interpreted narrowly and shall not impose general obligations to rescue or supervise others.

Section 4: Non‑Aggression Principle (NAP)

1. Aggression is defined as initiating or threatening to initiate significant interference with a person’s property rights or agreements through force, fraud, or negligence.
2. It is unlawful for any resident or any agent of the State to violate the NAP.
3. Every person has the right to use proportionate force in self‑defense or in defense of others, and to seek restitution for violations of their rights.
4. The State shall provide protective services to resident citizens.
5. Consent is invalid when given by a person who lacks the capacity to understand the nature or potential harm of the act.
6. Violations of the NAP include:
   • Attempting to control or obstruct the use of property one does not own (forestalling), including preventing homesteading except where a law prohibits it under Section 2, restricting exit from property, or blocking retrieval of one’s own property.
   • Failing to uphold contractual obligations.
   • Creating a significant and unjustified risk of interference with others’ rights (e.g., operating a vehicle while intoxicated).
   • Entering, searching, or inspecting another’s property without the owner’s consent, except pursuant to a lawful warrant issued on objective evidence of a specific rights violation. General searches, exploratory inspections, and searches lacking individualized cause are prohibited.
   • Knowingly attempting to deceive, corrupt, disable, circumvent, or otherwise interfere with a computerised system established by this Constitution so as to prevent, alter, or falsify its constitutionally required operation.
7. Only speech that constitutes incitement to immediate violence that would violate the NAP is prohibited.
8. The State may conduct a property search only pursuant to a warrant issued under due process of law based on probable cause of a specific act of aggression or negligence rising to the level of violating the NAP.

Section 5: Limited liability

1. Persons may agree by contract to limit liability arising from their dealings, including by limiting recovery to assets committed to a company, association, or other organisation.
2. A limitation of liability binds only the parties who agreed to it and shall not limit the property rights or claims of any other Person.
3. Where an organisation violates the property rights of a Person who did not agree to a limitation of liability, that limitation shall not protect a shareholder whose failure to exercise due diligence in relation to the violation constitutes a violation of the Non-Aggression Principle. Mere ownership of shares shall not, by itself, establish liability.

Section 6: Regulations

1. The State shall not impose safety, economic, moral, environmental, technological, or administrative regulations except where failure to comply constitutes harm or negligence rising to the level of violating the Non‑Aggression Principle. Any such regulation shall be narrowly tailored to preventing that harm and shall not restrict voluntary behaviour, exchange, or land use beyond what is necessary to prevent demonstrable aggression or negligence.
2. The State shall not impede the formation or operation of voluntary standards bodies, and shall treat their publications as advisory references that individuals and businesses may freely adopt or ignore.
3. The State shall not require licenses, permits, certifications, or fees for engaging in voluntary behaviour, exchange, occupation, or enterprise, except where failure to comply constitutes harm or negligence rising to the level of violating the Non‑Aggression Principle. Any such requirement shall be narrowly tailored to preventing demonstrable aggression or negligence and shall not restrict voluntary participation beyond what is necessary to prevent such harm.
4. The State shall not suspend, override, or expand its powers on the basis of emergency, crisis, or necessity.
5. No law shall grant the State additional powers on the basis of national security, public order, or similar justifications beyond those permitted under the Non‑Aggression Principle.
6. The State shall not seize property except as restitution following a conviction for aggression under due process of law.
7. No resident shall be compelled to disclose information or maintain records except where necessary to establish responsibility for aggression under the Non‑Aggression Principle.
8. The State shall not restrict expression, communication, encryption, or access to information except where such expression constitutes direct incitement to imminent aggression.
9. No resident shall be compelled to perform labour or service for the State except as restitution following conviction for aggression.
10. The State shall not impose zoning, land‑use restrictions, or building codes except where necessary to prevent demonstrable aggression or negligence under the Non‑Aggression Principle.
11. No resident shall be compelled to join or support any association, union, guild, or organisation.
12. The State shall not freeze, restrict, or monitor financial accounts except pursuant to a warrant issued under due process for investigation of aggression.
13. Uniform automated analysis of gift-account records expressly required by this Constitution shall not constitute monitoring for the purpose of the preceding clause. A Person may inspect identifiable gift-account records on behalf of the State only pursuant to a warrant issued on probable cause of tax fraud.
14. Limits on Judicial Expansion of Negligence: Negligence shall be interpreted strictly as conduct that creates a substantial and demonstrable risk of violating the Non‑Aggression Principle in a specific instance. Courts shall not define negligence by reference to compliance with industry standards, best practices, regulatory norms, or generalized duties of care, nor may they impose affirmative obligations that function as de facto regulation. Negligence may not be inferred from the mere absence of precautions, certifications, or procedures unless a direct causal link to a specific rights violation is proven.

Section 7: Punishment

1. The State holds a monopoly on significant retaliatory force, retribution, and punishment.
2. The State shall enforce punishment for aggression committed by or against any resident, irrespective of citizenship. This obligation is distinct from the provision of protective services, which are guaranteed only to resident citizens.
3. Punishment must:
   1. Impose restitution where possible
   2. Fit the seriousness of the crime
   3. Be consistent with punishments for similar crimes under similar circumstances
   4. Reflect the totality of an offender’s criminal behavior when multiple sentences are imposed