Legal Definition and Related Resources of Ecclesiastical Law

The law of the church . In England, the lay or secular courts were separated from the ecclesiastical courts after the Conquest and the latter were invested with the sole jurisdiction over ecclesiastical causes, which included the subject of marriage and divorce . In modern times, that jurisdiction is confined exclusively to the discipline of the clergy , as well as matters concerning doctrine , creed or form of worship of the church and the regulations for the government of its membership.

The law of the church. The existence in England of a separate order of ecclesiastical courts, and a separate system of law by them administered, may be traced back to the time of William the Conqueror, who separated the civil and the ecclesiastical jurisdictions, and forbade tribunals of either class from assuming cognizance of cases pertaining to the other. The elements of the English ecclesiastical law are the canon law, the civil law, the common law of England, and the statutes of the realm. The jurisdiction of the ecclesiastical tribunals extended to matters concerning the order of clergy and their discipline, and also to such affairs of the laity as “concern the health of the soul,” and under this latter theory it grasped also cases of marriage and divorce, and testamentary causes. But in more recent times (1830-1858), these latter subjects have been taken from these courts, and they are now substantially confined to administering the judicial authority and discipline incident to a national ecclesiastical establishment. See, also, “Canon Law.”

Browse or run a search for Ecclesiastical Law in the American Encyclopedia of Law, the Asian Encyclopedia of Law, the European Encyclopedia of Law, the UK Encyclopedia of Law or the Latin American and Spanish Encyclopedia of Law.

Ecclesiastical Law in Historical Law

You might be interested in the historical meaning of this term. Browse or search for Ecclesiastical Law in Historical Law in the Encyclopedia of Law.

Search for legal acronyms and/or abbreviations containing Ecclesiastical Law in the Legal Abbreviations and Acronyms Dictionary.

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Mentioned in these terms

Archbishop, Canonical Obedience, Canonist, Censure, Cession, Chancel, Chapter, Commissary, Common Law, Contumacy, Deprivation, Heresy, Impatronisation, Impatronization, Inhibition, Interdict, Investiture, Profession, Proxy, Significavit, Spoliation, Translation.

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This definition of Ecclesiastical Law is based on the The Cyclopedic Law Dictionary . This entry needs to be proofread.

Vocabularies (Semantic Web Information)

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Ecclesiastical law in Law Enforcement

Main Entry: Law Enforcement in the Legal Dictionary. This section provides, in the context of Law Enforcement, a partial definition of ecclesiastical law.

Resources

See Also

• Law Enforcement Officer
• Policeman
• Law Enforcement Agency

Further Reading

• ecclesiastical law in A Dictionary of Law Enforcement (Oxford University Press)
• ecclesiastical law in the Encyclopedia of Law Enforcement
• A Treatise on the Police of the Metropolis

English Legal System: Ecclesiastical Law

In the context of the English law, A Dictionary of Law provides the following legal concept of Ecclesiastical Law : (canon law, ecclesiastical law)

Church law, such as the Roman Catholic Code of Canon Law and, in England, the law of the Church of England. Unless subsequently becoming *legislation or *custom, it is not part of the laws of England but is binding on the clergy and lay people holding ecclesiastical office, e.g. churchwardens.

See ecclesiastical courts.

Meaning of Ecclesiastical Law in the Past

By this phrase it is intended to include all those rules which govern ecclesiastical tribunals Vide Law Canon. [1]

Resources

Notes and References

1. Partialy, this information about ecclesiastical law is based on the Bouvier´s Law Dictionary, 1848 edition. There is a list of terms of the Bouvier´s Law Dictionary, including ecclesiastical law.

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