Free tool · History of Law
Latin Legal Maxims and What They Mean: A Searchable Finder
Legal maxims are short sayings, often in Latin, that sum up settled principles: mens rea (a guilty mind), audi alteram partem (hear the other side), pacta sunt servanda (agreements must be kept), caveat emptor (let the buyer beware), res judicata (a matter already decided) and many more. They descend from Roman law, the medieval jurists and the English courts, and they remain useful as a shorthand for principles and as a way of recognising them in judgments. They are not rules that bind a court by themselves, and many have exceptions. Search by a word in the maxim, its meaning or its use, or browse by area of law.
Tool · Legal Maxim Finder
49 maxims found.
audi alteram partem (procedure)
Meaning: Hear the other side
Use: A decision-maker must give each party a chance to be heard (natural justice).
nemo iudex in causa sua (procedure)
Meaning: No one should be a judge in their own cause
Use: The rule against bias: a judge must have no interest in the case.
res judicata (procedure)
Meaning: A matter already decided
Use: A final judgment bars the same parties from relitigating the same claim.
sub judice (procedure)
Meaning: Under judicial consideration
Use: Comment on a case pending in court may amount to contempt.
ex parte (procedure)
Meaning: From one side only
Use: An application made without notice to the other party.
locus standi (procedure)
Meaning: A place to stand
Use: The right to bring a claim; standing.
in limine (procedure)
Meaning: At the threshold
Use: A preliminary application made before the main hearing, such as to exclude evidence.
mens rea (criminal)
Meaning: A guilty mind
Use: The mental element of a crime.
actus reus (criminal)
Meaning: A guilty act
Use: The physical element of a crime.
actus non facit reum nisi mens sit rea (criminal)
Meaning: An act does not make a person guilty unless the mind is guilty
Use: The basis of the requirement of a mental element.
nullum crimen sine lege (criminal)
Meaning: No crime without law
Use: No one may be punished for conduct that was not a crime when it was done.
ignorantia juris non excusat (criminal)
Meaning: Ignorance of the law is no excuse
Use: A person is presumed to know the law.
in dubio pro reo (criminal)
Meaning: In doubt, in favour of the accused
Use: Doubt as to guilt is resolved for the accused.
corpus delicti (criminal)
Meaning: The body of the crime
Use: The fact that a crime has been committed, as distinct from who did it.
habeas corpus (criminal)
Meaning: You shall have the body
Use: A writ requiring that a detained person be brought before a court to test the lawfulness of the detention.
pacta sunt servanda (contract)
Meaning: Agreements must be kept
Use: The foundation of the binding force of contracts and treaties.
caveat emptor (contract)
Meaning: Let the buyer beware
Use: The buyer takes the risk of defects they could have discovered, subject to statute.
quid pro quo (contract)
Meaning: Something for something
Use: An exchange; consideration.
consensus ad idem (contract)
Meaning: Agreement on the same thing
Use: A true meeting of minds on the terms.
contra proferentem (contract)
Meaning: Against the one who offers
Use: Ambiguity in a contract is read against the party who drafted it.
force majeure (contract)
Meaning: Superior force
Use: Events beyond control that may excuse performance, if the contract provides.
res ipsa loquitur (tort)
Meaning: The thing speaks for itself
Use: In some cases negligence is inferred from the nature of the accident.
volenti non fit injuria (tort)
Meaning: No wrong is done to one who consents
Use: A defence where the claimant freely accepted the risk.
damnum sine injuria (tort)
Meaning: Loss without legal wrong
Use: Harm that the law does not remedy because no right was infringed.
injuria sine damno (tort)
Meaning: Wrong without loss
Use: A legal wrong that is actionable without proof of damage, such as trespass.
respondeat superior (tort)
Meaning: Let the superior answer
Use: An employer is liable for an employee’s torts within the scope of employment.
novus actus interveniens (tort)
Meaning: A new intervening act
Use: An event that breaks the chain of causation.
bona fide (property)
Meaning: In good faith
Use: Honestly and without notice of a defect.
nemo dat quod non habet (property)
Meaning: No one gives what they do not have
Use: A person cannot transfer a better title than they hold, subject to exceptions.
quicquid plantatur solo, solo cedit (property)
Meaning: Whatever is attached to the land becomes part of the land
Use: Fixtures belong to the owner of the land.
cujus est solum, ejus est usque ad coelum et ad inferos (property)
Meaning: Whoever owns the soil owns it up to the sky and down to the depths
Use: The old rule of ownership of land, now limited in practice.
ejusdem generis (interpretation)
Meaning: Of the same kind
Use: A general word after a list takes its meaning from the list.
noscitur a sociis (interpretation)
Meaning: Known by its companions
Use: A word takes colour from the words around it.
expressio unius est exclusio alterius (interpretation)
Meaning: The mention of one excludes others
Use: Listing some things implies the exclusion of others.
lex specialis derogat legi generali (interpretation)
Meaning: The specific law overrides the general
Use: A specific provision prevails over a general one.
lex posterior derogat legi priori (interpretation)
Meaning: The later law overrides the earlier
Use: A later statute prevails over an earlier one that conflicts.
ultra vires (public law)
Meaning: Beyond the powers
Use: Action beyond legal authority is invalid.
stare decisis (public law)
Meaning: To stand by things decided
Use: Courts follow precedent.
ratio decidendi (public law)
Meaning: The reason for the decision
Use: The part of a judgment that binds.
obiter dictum (public law)
Meaning: Said in passing
Use: A remark not necessary to the decision, which does not bind.
prima facie (evidence)
Meaning: On first appearance
Use: A case or evidence sufficient to require an answer unless rebutted.
onus probandi (evidence)
Meaning: The burden of proof
Use: The party who asserts must prove.
res gestae (evidence)
Meaning: Things done
Use: Statements made at the time of an event, admitted as part of it.
bona vacantia (property)
Meaning: Ownerless goods
Use: Property of a person who dies without heirs, which passes to the state.
fiat justitia ruat caelum (public law)
Meaning: Let justice be done though the heavens fall
Use: A statement of the primacy of justice over consequence.
ubi jus ibi remedium (equity)
Meaning: Where there is a right there is a remedy
Use: Every right should have a remedy.
equity will not suffer a wrong to be without a remedy (equity)
Meaning: (an English maxim)
Use: Equity fills gaps where the common law gives no remedy.
he who seeks equity must do equity (equity)
Meaning: (an English maxim)
Use: A claimant for equitable relief must act fairly towards the defendant.
delay defeats equity (equity)
Meaning: (an English maxim)
Use: Unreasonable delay (laches) can bar equitable relief.
Search the Latin and English maxims of the law by a word in the maxim, its meaning or its use, or browse by area. Maxims are short statements of settled ideas, useful for remembering a principle and for recognising it in a judgment; they are not rules that bind a court, and many have exceptions. A reference aid, not legal advice. Runs in your browser; nothing is stored or sent.
How to use it
- Type a word from the maxim, its meaning or its use, such as good faith, burden or delay.
- Or choose an area of law to browse.
- Read the meaning and the use of each maxim.
- Look for the maxim in the judgments you read.
Common questions
Do courts still use Latin maxims?
Many are still used, in Latin or in English, especially in contract, criminal law, procedure and interpretation. Some jurisdictions are moving to plain English in legislation and procedure rules.
Are maxims binding?
No. They are summaries of principles, not rules of law. A court applies the underlying rule, which may have exceptions.
Where do the maxims come from?
Roman law and the medieval jurists, the English common-law and equity courts, and international law and legal scholarship.
Learn the law behind the tool
This tool is part of our History of Law course, with lectures, concept maps, flashcards, interactive exercises and a capstone case. History of Law: Legal Latin and Maxims.
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General information, simplified, mainly on American law, not legal advice. States and countries differ, and real cases turn on facts that a tool cannot capture.