Legal Dictionary


Definition of authority


  • (UK) IPA: /ɔːˈθɒɹəti/
  • (US) IPA: /əˈθɑɹəti/
  • Audio (US) [?]


authority (countable and uncountable; plural authorities)





Derived terms

  • moral authority

Related terms

Further reading

The word authority derives from the Latin word auctoritas meaning invention, advice, opinion, influence or commands which originate from an auctor indicating that authority originates from a master, leader or author. Essentially authority is imposed by superiors upon inferiors either by force of arms (structural authority) or by force of argument (sapiential authority). Usually authority has components of both compulsion and persuasion. For this reason, as used in Roman law authority is differentiated potestas (legal or military power) and imperium (persuasive political rank or standing).

Legitimate Authority



The definition of authority in contemporary social science is a matter of debate. According to Michaels, in the Encyclopedia of Social Sciences, authority is the capacity, innate or acquired for exercising ascendancy over a group. Other scientists, however, argue that authority is not a capacity but a relationship. It is sanctioned power, institutionalized power.

In political philosophy, the jurisdiction of political authority, the location of sovereignty, the balancing of freedom and authority (cf. Cristi 2005), and the requirements of political obligations have been core questions from Plato and Aristotle to the present. In many democractic societies, there is an ongoing discussion regarding the legitimate extent of governmental authority in general. In the United States, for instance, there is a widespread belief that the political system as it was instituted by the Founding Fathers should accord the populace as much freedom as reasonable, and that government should limit its authority accordingly.




1.     lex situs
2.     AORO
3.     lex causae
4.     scienter
5.     adjudication order
6.     lex loci celebrationis
7.     Miranda warning
8.     quorum
9.     lex patriae
10.     appellant