Obiter dictum

	Email		Print
	Bookmark		Link

Obiter dictum

An obiter dictum (plural obiter dicta, often referred to simply as dicta
Dictum

In common law legal terminology a dictum is any statement that forms a part of the judgment of a court, in particular a court whose decisions have value as precedent under the doctrine of stare decisis....
), Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Military history of the Roman Empire, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe....
for a statement "said by the way", is a remark or observation made by a judge

Judge

Discussion

Ask a question about 'Obiter dictum'

Start a new discussion about 'Obiter dictum'

Answer questions from other users

Full Discussion Forum

Encyclopedia

Latin

Judge

A judge, or arbiter of justice, is a lead official who presides over a court of law,which is operated by the local, state, and/or federal government....
that, although included in the body of the court's opinion, does not form a necessary part of the court's decision. In a court opinion, obiter dicta include, but are not limited to, words "introduced by way of illustration, or analogy or argument." Unlike the rationes decidendi
Ratio decidendi

Ratio decidendi is a List of Latin phrases meaning "the reason" or "the rationale for the decision."The ratio decidendi is:The process of determining the ratio decidendi is a correctly thought through analysis of what the court actually decided ? essentially, based on the legal points about which the parties in the case actual...
, obiter dicta are not the subject of the judicial decision, even if they happen to be correct statements of law. Under the doctrine of stare decisis
Stare decisis

Stare decisis is the legal principle under which judges are obligated to follow the precedents established in prior decisions.In the United States, which uses a common law system in its federal courts and most of its state courts, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has stated:...
, statements constituting obiter dicta are therefore not binding, although in some jurisdictions, such as England and Wales

England and Wales

England and Wales is a legal unit within the United Kingdom. It consists of England and Wales, two of the four countries of the United Kingdom....
, they can be strongly persuasive.

An example of an instance where a court opinion may include obiter dicta is where a court rules that it lacks jurisdiction

Jurisdiction

In law, jurisdiction is the practical authority granted to a formally constituted legal body or to a political leader to deal with and make pronouncements on legal matters and, by implication, to administer justice within a defined area of responsibility....
to hear a case or dismisses the case on a technicality. If the court in such a case offers opinions on the merits of the case, such opinions may constitute obiter dicta. Less clear-cut instances of obiter dicta occur where a judge makes a side comment in an opinion to provide context for other parts of the opinion, or makes a thorough exploration of a relevant area of law. Another example would be where the judge, in explaining his ruling, provides a hypothetical set of facts and explains how he or she believes the law would apply to those facts.

In reaching decisions, courts sometimes quote passages of obiter dicta found in the texts of the opinions from prior cases, with or without acknowledging the quoted passage's status as obiter dicta. A quoted passage of obiter dicta may become part of the holding or ruling in a subsequent case, depending on what the latter court actually decided and how that court treated the principle embodied in the quoted passage.

The arguments and reasoning of a dissenting opinion also constitute obiter dicta.