case law

American  

noun

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

---

case law British  

noun

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

---

Etymology

Origin of case law

First recorded in 1860–65

Example Sentences

False case law or citations appearing in court filings have meanwhile prompted warnings about AI use in legal settings, with AI errors also reportedly causing issues for some governments.

From BBC • May 8, 2026

And I can say there’s not a lot of case law on this issue.

From Salon • Jan. 28, 2026

In deciding the case, involving Texas’ election law, he and his law clerks had sifted through hundreds of thousands of exhibits, reviewed testimony from more than 70 witnesses and researched relevant case law.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 6, 2026

Normally, Colorado case law takes a relatively capacious view of how a crime’s “gravity” should be measured.

From Slate • Dec. 29, 2025

Though the judge in the John Moore case said patients must be told if their tissues have commercial potential, there was no law enacted to enforce that ruling, so it remains only case law.

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