obiter dictum
/ˈdɪktəm
/noun (plural obiter dicta /ˈdɪktə/) Law
1A judge’s expression of opinion uttered in court or in a written judgement, but not essential to the decision and therefore not legally binding as a precedent.This Court will be very busy if we grant special leave in respect of judges' obiter dicta....
- Remarks about equitable leases were therefore merely obiter dicta; and although they pointed the way to a solution of this problem, they have not been taken up in any later decision.
- That submission runs into the authority of a number of final courts in the world and obiter dicta of this Court.
1.1An incidental remark.The Maxims were collected after Napoleon's death from what editor David Chandler rightfully terms his obiter dicta, casual remarks, observations, or comments that were culled from a vast mass of documents, letters, and memoirs....
- Rather than trying to capture an argument whose start I missed, which depends on knowledge of philosophers I have not read, I'll note a couple of obiter dicta: bq…
- Mr. Smith treats certain of my remarks about Kierkegaard as though they were obiter dicta, insouciantly tossed off without context or explanation.
Origin
Latin obiter 'in passing' + dictum 'something that is said'.
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