precedential
Americanadjective
-
of, involving, or serving as a precedent
-
having precedence
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of precedential
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
City of Brandon was a straightforward precedential fix-it job.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 23, 2026
“Trial court decisions have no precedential value in California; they bind the parties but not another court,” noted James Fischer, an insurance law expert and professor at Southwestern Law School in Los Angeles.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2025
That distinction, he wrote, “lacks a meaningful application not only in theory, but in practice as well,” tossing it in the precedential dumpster.
From Slate ● Jun. 21, 2022
“The court of appeals has said in a precedential opinion specifying the single-person rule applies to third-degree murder. … I feel it would be an abuse of discretion not to grant the motion.”
From Washington Post ● Mar. 11, 2021
“He can designate particular board opinions as precedential, thus making those opinions binding on future panels. He can also decide whether any particular review will be instituted and which judges will sit on the panel.”
From New York Times ● Mar. 1, 2021
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
