Gesetzen

Gesetzen is the dative plural form of the German noun Gesetz, which means law or statute. It appears in phrases that refer to laws in a dative context, such as nach den Gesetzen, gemäß den Gesetzen, or den Gesetzen zufolge. The form Gesetzen is not used as a standalone nominative or accusative noun; the standard plural for those cases is Gesetze.

Grammatical notes: In German, the plural dative is formed by adding -en to the plural Gesetze, yielding den Gesetzen when a determiner is present. It typically occurs after definite articles or other determiners, as in den Gesetzen. Outside of fixed phrases or with a different determiner, one would generally use Gesetze in nominative or accusative positions.

Usage in legal and public language: Gesetzen frequently appears in legal writing and journalism in phrases such as den Gesetzen zufolge (according to the laws) or nach den Gesetzen (according to the laws). It can refer to the body of statutes enacted by a legislature, or to the legal framework in a given jurisdiction, depending on context. When discussing individual statutes, the singular des Gesetzes or die Gesetze as the plural may be used, with den Gesetzen serving a different grammatical role.

See also: Gesetz, Gesetze. The topic contrasts with the singular forms dem Gesetz (dative singular) and des Gesetzes (genitive singular), and with Gesetze as the nominative/accusative plural for the subject or direct object.