law court
2
3.1
- noun
- /lɔː kɔrt/
:
tribunal
- After months of preparation, the attorney presented her case in the law court to seek justice.
- common law court
So Rome did not have law courts in a building locked away.
- So Rome did not have law courts in a building locked away.
- Here he has in mind the law court, right, because he talks about being sued.
- Don't let it go to a law court because then you're actually going to pay, right?
- He thus had a front row seat to unfolding plays of law and society in both law courts and in Royal Courts.
Examples
-
In the British Empire prior to 1700, pirates were dealt with by common-law courts, although not very effectively.
Academic text (2009) -
The contrast between this approach and that of a common law court is stark.
Academic text (2016) -
Those two elements are necessary in common law courts, mostly state courts.
-
The many cases that ended up in the law courts point to highly complex trade arrangements.
Academic text (2005) -
We should not bother with the politics, Parliament, or these law courts because we can never win.
Fiction book (1990) -
From the start, Lovett said and wrote what he thought about Chicago politicians, police, and law courts.
Academic text (2001) -
There was only one way, and it led through a labyrinth of corridors and doors into the law court.
Fiction book (2001) -
As already mentioned, revelations of sexual abuse by the clergy have had many repercussions in American law courts.
Academic text (1996) -
The hush radiated out through the microphones to the crowd in front of the law court.
Fiction book (2001) -
Modern common law courts also require intent for a plaintiff to prevail on a trespass claim.
Academic text (1994)
Synonyms
∞
1.4
A place where a judge hears and decides legal cases
84
7.4
A group of people, usually judges, who decide cases in court
76
3.2
A place where a judge hears and decides cases about the law
2
3.8
A place where judges decide legal cases and apply the law
A place where a judge hears and decides legal cases
How High
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a tribunal where legal cases are heard' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'law' (legal matters) with 'court' (a forum for judges). This straightforward noun–noun composition is common cross-linguistically and in English, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Law court joins law and court; picture a place where judges sit and use the law to make decisions about people's disagreements. That's why law court means 'a place where legal cases are heard'.