quo warranto
Americannoun
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(formerly, in England) a writ calling upon a person to show by what authority they claim an office, franchise, or liberty.
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(in England and the United States) a trial, hearing, or other legal proceeding initiated to determine by what authority one has an office, franchise, or liberty.
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the pleading initiating a trial, hearing, or other legal proceeding initiated to determine by what authority one has an office, franchise, or liberty.
noun
Etymology
Origin of quo warranto
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Medieval Latin quō warrantō “by what warrant”
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.
The filing asks the state's highest court to grant a rarely used writ of quo warranto to oust Wu from his office.
From BBC • Aug. 5, 2025
First, quo warranto actions are mechanisms for ensuring honest corporate governance.
From Slate • Jul. 25, 2017
As he put it, “State attorneys general can bring quo warranto proceedings to access information about whether the entities are conduits for illegal emoluments.”
From Slate • Feb. 15, 2017
If quo warranto action was instituted in an unfriendly court, the Governor might well find himself judicially barred from concluding his term.
From Time Magazine Archive
And the regular course is to bring a writ of quo warranto, to enquire by what warrant the members now exercise their corporate power, having forfeited it by such and such proceedings.
From Commentaries on the Laws of England Book the First by Blackstone, William, Sir
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.
