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| a fool or simpleton; ninny. |
| a gadget; dingus; thingumbob. |
| common law | |
| —n | |
| 1. | the body of law based on judicial decisions and custom, as distinct from statute law |
| 2. | the law of a state that is of general application, as distinct from regional customs |
| 3. | (modifier) common-law denoting a marriage deemed to exist after a couple have cohabited for several years: common-law marriage; common-law wife |
Law developed in the course of time from the rulings of judges, as opposed to law embodied in statutes passed by legislatures (statutory law) or law embodied in a written constitution (constitutional law). (See stare decisis.)
Note: The importance of common law is particularly stressed in the legal system of Britain, on which the legal system of the United States is based.