A specialist law enforcement agency is a

law enforcement agency A law enforcement agency (LEA) is any government agency responsible for the enforcement of the laws. Jurisdiction LEAs which have their ability to apply their powers restricted in some way are said to operate within a jurisdiction. LEAs ...

which specialises in the types of laws it enforces, or types of activities it undertakes, or geography it enforces laws in, or these in combination. The specialisation may be imposed voluntarily by policy, consensus with other agencies, or logistical constraints, or it could be imposed legally by

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

and

jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, areas of jurisdiction apply to local, state, and federal levels. Jur ...

, or it is result of the historical evolution of the agency, or combinations thereof. For example, some agencies only enforce laws related to

tax A tax is a compulsory financial charge or some other type of levy imposed on a taxpayer (an individual or legal entity) by a governmental organization in order to fund government spending and various public expenditures (regional, local, or n ...

ation or

customs Customs is an authority or agency in a country responsible for collecting tariffs and for controlling the flow of goods, including animals, transports, personal effects, and hazardous items, into and out of a country. Traditionally, customs ...

. Other agencies can only operate in certain areas, for example

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

-occupied buildings and land, or on waterways. Some agencies have otherwise unrestricted jurisdiction, but specialise in certain types of operations, for example

highway patrol A highway patrol, or state patrol is either a police unit created primarily for the purpose of overseeing and enforcing traffic safety compliance on roads and highways, or a detail within an existing local or regional police agency that is prima ...

s. Specialities can include: * For example,

United States Department of Veterans Affairs Police The United States Department of Veterans Affairs Police (VA Police) is the uniformed law enforcement service of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, responsible for the protection of the VA Medical Centers (VAMC) and other facilities such as ...

. * For example,

United States Border Patrol The United States Border Patrol (USBP) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement agency under the United States' U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Customs and Border Protection and is responsible for securing ...

. * For example,

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Office of Law Enforcement The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Office of Law Enforcement (NOAA OLE) is a federal police part of the National Marine Fisheries Service of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, headquartered in Silver ...

. * For example,

United States Park Police The United States Park Police (USPP) is one of the oldest uniformed federal law enforcement agencies in the United States. It functions as a full-service law enforcement agency with responsibilities and jurisdiction in those National Park Servic ...

. * For example,

United States Postal Inspection Service The United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), or the Postal Inspectors, is the law enforcement arm of the United States Postal Service. It supports and protects the U.S. Postal Service, its employees, infrastructure, and customers by enfor ...

. * For example,

Polizei beim Deutschen Bundestag Polizei beim Deutschen Bundestag ( en, Police at the German Bundestag), also known as Parlamentspolizei or Bundestagspolizei, is a separate police force for the premises of the Bundestag (the German parliament's lower house) in Berlin. The police ...

. * For example,

California Highway Patrol The California Highway Patrol (CHP) is a state law enforcement agency of the U.S. state of California. The CHP has primary patrol jurisdiction over all California highways and roads and streets outside city limits, and can exercise law enfor ...

. * For example,

Australian Customs Service The Australian Customs Service was an Government of Australia, Australian Government agency responsible for Australian border protection, duties and taxes between 1985 and 2009. The Service was first under the portfolio of the Department of Indus ...

. * For example,

Independent Commission Against Corruption (New South Wales) The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) is an agency of the Government of New South Wales responsible for eliminating and investigating corrupt activities and enhancing the integrity of the state's public administration. The Comm ...

. * For example,

Australian Taxation Office The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) is an Australian statutory agency and the principal revenue collection body for the Australian Government. The ATO has responsibility for administering the Australian federal taxation system, superannuati ...

. * For example,

Canadian Pacific Railway Police Service The Canadian Pacific Police Service (CPPS) is a private railroad police force enforcing safety and policing along Canadian Pacific Railway properties and rail lines in Canada and the United States, including limited sections of the Milton line ...

. * For example,

Iowa Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Enforcement Agency The Iowa Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Enforcement was a law enforcement agency located in the state of Iowa. Like the Iowa State Patrol, Motor Vehicle Enforcement (MVE as they are most commonly called) was a statewide agency. The ...

. * For example,

Special Protection Group The Special Protection Group (SPG) is an agency of the Government of India whose sole responsibility is protecting the Prime Minister of India and in some cases, his or her family. It was formed in 1988 by an Act of the Parliament of India. The ...

. * For example,

Serious Fraud Office (UK) The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) is a non-ministerial government department of the Government of the United Kingdom that investigates and prosecutes serious or complex fraud and corruption in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The SFO is acco ...

. * For example,

Central Reserve Police Force The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) is a federal police organisation in India under the authority of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) of the Government of India. It is one among the Central Armed Police Forces. The CRPF's primary role li ...

. * For example,

Diplomatic Security Service The Diplomatic Security Service (DSS or DS) is a security and law enforcement agency that acts as the operational division of the Bureau of Diplomatic Security, which is a branch of the United States Department of State. Its primary mission is ...

. *{{Specialist lea type descr , coast For example,

Indian Coast Guard The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) is a maritime law enforcement and search and rescue agency of India with jurisdiction over its territorial waters including its contiguous zone and exclusive economic zone. The Indian Coast Guard was formally esta ...

. See Specialist law enforcement agencies for a list of specialist agencies.

See also