Yeah I'd say that doing a buff spell should be the equivalent of drawing your weapon.

I think you could justify not making charm spells illegal simply because guards recognize that they don't have the illusion skill to detect it. I think that, like what AinurOlorin said, ideally if the person you were trying to charm had a sufficiently skilled mage friend nearby that he should respond somehow.

I always imagined all the illusion spell effects (well, except for Light mostly) as just a representation in the inner eye of the mage that cast the spel but in truth the effects were all perfectly invisible for anyone else.

Making people like you should definately be harder. Bribing should also fail if you have low speechcraft and if done on an important person it should be considered a crime.

Charm spells should work in a similar way. If you cast it on a beggar and your illusion or charm spell is too low level it won't work but it won't be considered a crime. If you do it on a guard or someone of authority it should be considered a crime. If your illusion skill and charm spell are sufficient level you should be able to do it without anyone noticing and it shouldn't be considered a crime. That way there's a real incentive to get better at it.

As it was in Morrowind and Oblivion it was way too easy to get people to like you and get the benefits that go with that.

Offering a guard or official a bribe should be a minor crime, too.

This. I do agree with the OP and it woudl be more realsitic but imo it's one of those thigns that would actually harm the game and make it less fun. And although I'm all for realism I mostly want to enjoy my game, that's why I'm palying a videogame not doing something else in real life :shrug:

That makes sense, at least for Charm. A powerful mage using a charm spell could influence a Count or a local warlord, possibly influencing the fate of entire nations in the process. Look to the Dragon Age setting to see what should happen to mages who seek to control the minds of others.

I would go so far as to say people should react to the casting of every spell as a potential threat, but drawing your weapon in a public space should definitely be an infraction. Say...you draw, and are confronted by a guard telling you to sheathe your weapon now, or face the consequences. Whether you face those consequences depends on whether you decide to comply or not.

Ummm.. So doing a charm that makes someone tell the truth and trust you or do whatever you want is a low-class crime now.... Those one's should be equal to killing someone...