Gregor Mendel's first law is Mendelian segregation: the two alleles at a genetic locus in a diploid individual separate into different gametes, so each gamete receives one. In ordinary meiosis, separation of homologous chromosomes at meiosis I provides the chromosomal mechanism; their sister chromatids separate at meiosis II.
The second law is independent assortment: segregation at one genetic locus is independent of segregation at another when the loci are unlinked. Random orientation of different pairs of homologous chromosomes at meiosis I supplies the mechanism for genes on different chromosomes. Genetic linkage is an essential qualification: nearby loci on one chromosome do not generally assort independently, although sufficiently frequent genetic recombination can make their observed combinations approach independence. Genetic dominance concerns the phenotype of a heterozygote and is not one of these two segregation laws.
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