"Law on the books" refers to the written laws that a nation or state must abide by, while "Law in action" describes how a law is applied or enforced. When we talk about "law on the books" versus "law in action", there are differences we should realize in order to understand the two.Law in the books is a relatively simple concept. It is the law as it is written. The correct answer is a) "Law on the books" emphasizes statutory guidelines, while "law in action" considers the individual judges' discretion. They often follow the structure or order of the articles or sections in the law. The best way to study. All laws in the United States begin as bills. Form books, and online forms available through subscription services and elsewhere, provide sample documents for use in many areas of law. The New York criminal laws you need, organized and formatted for convenient research in a single volume.