statutory law

American

[stach-oo-tawr-ee law] / ˈstætʃ ʊˌtɔr i ˈlɔ /

noun

the written law established by enactments expressing the will of the legislature, as distinguished from the unwritten law or common law.

statutory law Cultural

A law or group of laws passed by a legislature or other official governing bodies. (Compare common law.)

Etymology

Origin of statutory law

First recorded in 1875–80

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.

See Examples For:

statutory law

To gain the throne, they had to accept the English Bill of Rights which, among other things, abolished the royal power to nullify statutory law, either in general or for the benefit of particular people.

From Slate ● Feb. 21, 2025

“The whole array of statutory law and constitutional law is available.”

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 23, 2024

Currently, those rights in California were established by statutory law and by court ruling.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2022

However, in a well-functioning democracy, state constitutional and statutory law should reflect the preferences of a state's people.

From Salon ● Aug. 2, 2022

This is the statutory law, but the wife by obtaining a decree in chancery may possess all the rights of a femme sole.

From History of Woman Suffrage, Volume III by Stanton, Elizabeth Cady

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