quarter sessions
Americannoun
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an English court of general criminal jurisdiction for crimes less than homicide, held quarterly.
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(in the U.S.) a court with limited criminal jurisdiction, having local administrative powers in some states.
noun
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(in England and Wales, formerly) a criminal court held four times a year before justices of the peace or a recorder, empowered to try all but the most serious offences and to hear appeals from petty sessions. Replaced in 1972 by crown courts See also crown court Compare assizes
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(in Scotland, formerly) a court held by justices of the peace four times a year, empowered to hear appeals from justice of the peace courts and to deal with some licensing matters: abolished in 1975
Etymology
Origin of quarter sessions
First recorded in 1570–80
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.
At UCLA, the master’s of social welfare — which runs for eight quarter sessions — amounts to more than $65,000 for California residents without financial aid.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 6, 2026
In Bury St. Edmunds, England, when only eleven jurors filed out. of the box at West Suffolk quarter sessions court, Judge Gerald Howard took another look, spotted the twelfth juror sound asleep.
From Time Magazine Archive
It has one court of quarter sessions, and is divided into five petty sessional divisions.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 13, Slice 8 "Hudson River" to "Hurstmonceaux" by Various
The boroughs of Hereford and Leominster have separate commissions of the peace, and the borough of Hereford has in addition a separate court of quarter sessions.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 13, Slice 3 "Helmont, Jean" to "Hernosand" by Various
The sole survival of these grants is the jurisdiction of the justices of the Soke of Peterborough to try for capital offences at their quarter sessions.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 8 "Haller, Albrecht" to "Harmonium" by Various
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.
