judicial review

American  

[joo-dish-uhl ri-vyoo] / dʒuˈdɪʃ əl rɪˈvju /

noun

1. the power of a court to adjudicate the constitutionality of the laws of a government or the acts of a government official.

---

judicial review Cultural  

1. The principle by which courts can declare acts of either the executive branch or the legislative branch unconstitutional. The Supreme Court has exercised this power, for example, to revoke state laws that denied civil rights guaranteed by the Constitution. (See also checks and balances.)

---

Etymology

Origin of judicial review

First recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

judicial review

Berkeley Group is considering seeking a judicial review.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026

Last month, a federal court said that caseworkers may be held personally liable for taking a child from a parent without prior judicial review because it is such a clear violation of the Constitution.

From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026

There has to be a real reason, it has to be subject to some sort of judicial review, and the accused has to be given some opportunity at least to respond to the charges.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 29, 2026

The statute says that there is no judicial review, but only with respect to the DHS Secretary’s determination of whether a country deserves a TPS designation or not.

From Slate ● Jun. 25, 2026

But in 1790 the Supreme Court was a woefully weak third branch of the federal government and the principle of judicial review had yet to be established.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis