matter of law

American

noun

Law.

an issue or matter to be determined according to the relevant principles of law.

matter of law British

noun

law an issue requiring the court's interpretation of the law or relevant principles of the law Compare matter of fact

"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

Example Sentences

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matter of law

But the bank said arbitrators punished it for “truthfully advising the investing community about Bodner’s misconduct, while rewarding a wrongdoer whose claims would fail as a matter of law in any other forum.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026

Musk's claims against Microsoft were dismissed as a matter of law given the jury's findings on the two claims against OpenAI.

From BBC ● May 18, 2026

Rather, they should be a matter of law.

From MarketWatch ● Jan. 15, 2026

A federal district court granted summary judgment to Felix, removing the question of whether the shooting was reasonable from a jury and declaring the killing legally justified as a matter of law.

From Slate ● Apr. 15, 2025

I won't go into the matter of law now.

From The Golden Web by Oppenheim, E. Phillips (Edward Phillips)

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023