Meaning & use
point of law
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Meanings
nouncountablelegallaw
A question about how the law applies or should be interpreted, which a court must decide.
Grammar: Countable: you can say 'a point of law' or 'several points of law'. Usually appears with 'a' or in the plural.
Patterns
- a point of law
- raise a point of law
- decide a point of law
- on a point of law
The appeal was based on a single point of law, not on the facts of the case.
Her lawyer raised a point of law about whether the search was legal.
The judge reserved judgment on the point of law until the following morning.
nouncountablelegallaw
A specific legal rule or principle that a party argues in a case.
Grammar: Countable and often used in the plural when several rules are argued together: 'points of law'.
Patterns
- argue a point of law
- a point of law arises
- points of law
Both sides submitted written arguments on the points of law involved.
The tribunal asked the parties to identify any point of law they wished to dispute.
Where a point of law arises, the case may go to a higher court.
Word forms
| plural | points of law |
|---|
Common combinations
- a question of law
- The court treated it as a question of law, not of fact.
- on a point of law
- The ruling was challenged on a point of law.
- raise a point of law
- Counsel raised a point of law at the start of the hearing.
- decide a point of law
- It is for the judge to decide the point of law.
- appeal on a point of law
- They appealed on a point of law after losing the case.
Synonyms and how they differ
- legal question
- A plainer, less technical way to say the same thing; 'point of law' is the fixed term used in court documents.
- question of law
- Very close in meaning and common in legal writing; it stresses that the issue is about legal rules rather than disputed facts.
- legal issue
- Broader and more informal; it can cover any legal problem, not only a rule the court must interpret.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: point of law or point of fact? point of law or law point?
point of law vs point of fact
A 'point of fact' is a disputed detail about what actually happened, while a 'point of law' is about how a legal rule should be read or applied.
point of law vs law point
'Law point' is not the standard English phrase; use 'point of law' in formal legal writing.
Practice
The appeal was allowed because the judge had made an error on a ______.
Choose one answer.
'Point of law' fits because the error concerns how a legal rule was applied. 'Point of fact' would mean a dispute about what happened, and 'point of view' and 'point of order' are unrelated fixed phrases.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “point of law”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.