Chemical laws are those laws of nature relevant to chemistry.

The most fundamental

concept in chemistry is the law of conservation of mass, which states that there is
no detectable change in the quantity of matter during an ordinary chemical
reaction. Modern physics shows that it is actually energy that is conserved, and
that energy and mass are related; a concept which becomes important in nuclear
chemistry. Conservation of energy leads to the important concepts of equilibrium,
thermodynamics, and kinetics.

Additional laws of chemistry elaborate on the law of conservation of mass. Joseph

Proust's law of definite composition says that pure chemicals are composed of
elements in a definite formulation; we now know that the structural arrangement of
these elements is also important.

Dalton's law of multiple proportions says that these chemicals will present
themselves in proportions that are small whole numbers (i.e. 1:2 O:H in water);
although in many systems (notably biomacromolecules and minerals) the ratios tend
to require large numbers, and are frequently represented as a fraction. Such
compounds are known as non-stoichiometric compounds

More modern laws of chemistry define the relationship between energy and
transformations.

In equilibrium, molecules exist in mixture defined by the transformations possible

on the timescale of the equilibrium, and are in a ratio defined by the intrinsic
energy of the molecules�the lower the intrinsic energy, the more abundant the
molecule.
Transforming one structure to another requires the input of energy to cross an
energy barrier; this can come from the intrinsic energy of the molecules
themselves, or from an external source which will generally accelerate
transformations. The higher the energy barrier, the slower the transformation
occurs.
There is a hypothetical intermediate, or transition structure, that corresponds to
the structure at the top of the energy barrier. The Hammond-Leffler Postulate
states that this structure looks most similar to the product or starting material
which has intrinsic energy closest to that of the energy barrier. Stabilizing this
hypothetical intermediate through chemical interaction is one way to achieve
catalysis.
All chemical processes are reversible (law of microscopic reversibility) although
some processes have such an energy bias, they are essentially irreversible.