common-law

[ kom-uh n-law ]

/ ˈkɒm ənˈlɔ /

adjective

of, relating to, or established by common law: a common-law spouse.

Words nearby common-law

common touch, the, common variable immunodeficiency, common year, common yellow throat, common-cold virus, common-law, common-law marriage, common-sense realism, commonable, commonage, commonality

Origin of common-law

First recorded in 1905–10

Definition for common-law (2 of 2)

common law

noun

the system of law originating in England, as distinct from the civil or Roman law and the canon or ecclesiastical law.

the unwritten law, especially of England, based on custom or court decision, as distinct from statute law.

the law administered through the system of courts established for the purpose, as distinct from equity or admiralty.

Origin of common law

Middle English word dating back to 1300–50

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Examples from the Web for common-law

Less canonically, “natural marriage” is also at times used as a rough synonym for “common-law marriage.”
What Is ‘Natural Marriage?’|Michelle Cottle|March 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Single-parent, same-sex, and common-law families barely penetrated public consciousness, much less the Hebrew lexicon.
People-Powered Social Revolution in Israel Promotes Rights of Same-Sex Families|Irit Rosenblum|November 15, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Common-law partnerships have their own independent authority and validity.
Israeli Attorney Suggests Common-Law Marriage As an Act of Civil Disobedience|Irit Rosenblum|November 8, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Common-law partnership makes the couple, and not the government or religious institution, the authority in family life.
Israeli Attorney Suggests Common-Law Marriage As an Act of Civil Disobedience|Irit Rosenblum|November 8, 2013|DAILY BEAST

Common-law partnership offers privacy and autonomy in a world of increasing intrusion and regulation.
Israeli Attorney Suggests Common-Law Marriage As an Act of Civil Disobedience|Irit Rosenblum|November 8, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Common-law judges and civilians would agree that the finder got possession first, and so could keep it as against the shopkeeper.
The Common Law|Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
Another is the interaction of chancery and common-law practice and traditions since the Judicature Acts.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 10, Slice 1|Various
Let me ask, Can the city by any means legalize a common-law misdemeanor?
Jersey Street and Jersey Lane|H. C. Bunner
Marriage bonds are loose in the West Indies, and common-law marriages are the rule rather than the exception.
The Panama Canal|Frederic Jennings Haskin
Now, you understand, gentlemen, that there is no common-law jurisdiction of offences residing in the United States Courts.
Trial of the Officers and Crew of the Privateer Savannah, on the Charge of Piracy, in the United States Circuit Court for the Southern District of New York|A. F. Warburton

British Dictionary definitions for common-law

common law

noun

the body of law based on judicial decisions and custom, as distinct from statute law

the law of a state that is of general application, as distinct from regional customs

common-law (modifier) denoting a marriage deemed to exist after a couple have cohabited for several yearscommon-law marriage; common-law wife

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for common-law

common law

Law developed in the course of time from the rulings of judges, as opposed to law embodied in statutes passed by legislatures (statutory law) or law embodied in a written constitution (constitutional law). (See stare decisis.)