case law

American  

noun

1. law established by judicial decisions in particular cases, instead of by legislative action.

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case law British  

noun

1. law established by following judicial decisions given in earlier cases Compare statute law See also precedent

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Etymology

Origin of case law

First recorded in 1860–65

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

case law

“We have some case law which says they can void a real-estate transaction if it’s done for the purpose of avoiding recovery. But this was an expansion beyond that,” Rowan said.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026

Federal judges have found that the government filed statements generated by artificial intelligence that referenced nonexistent case law, wrote briefs that ignored facts and filed declarations with inaccurate dates, the ProPublica review shows.

From Salon ● Jul. 30, 2026

In Tunick's case, "law enforcement seemingly took advantage of the relaxed constitutional protections at the border to try to dig up evidence" against him, his lawyers said.

From Barron's ● Jul. 29, 2026

And given case law about CEQA, he said the union has “a very plausible argument.”

From Los Angeles Times ● May 29, 2026

And at this point no case law has fully clarified whether you own or have the right to control your tissues.

From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot