Definitions

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun (Law) An incidental and collateral opinion uttered by a judge. See dictum, n., 2 (a).

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun law a statement or remark in a court's judgment that is not essential to the disposition of the case.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun an opinion voiced by a judge on a point of law not directly bearing on the case in question and therefore not binding
  • noun an incidental remark

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Latin, something said in passing : obiter, in passing + dictum, something said, from neuter past participle of dīcere, to say.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Latin “a saying by the way”

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word obiter dictum.

Examples

    Sorry, no example sentences found.

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.

  • Thanks for listing this, by the way.

    June 9, 2010