Legal Definition and Related Resources of Prohibition

In practise , the term refers to a judicial writ issuing out of a court of superior jurisdiction and directed to an inferior court or quasi -judicial tribunal for the purpose of preventing the latter from usurping a jurisdiction with which it is not legally vested or exceeding its jurisdiction in matters of which it has no cognizance . The broad governing principle is that a prohibition lies where a subordinate tribunal has no jurisdiction at all to deal with the cause or matter before it, or where in the progress of a cause within its jurisdiction some point arises for decision which such inferior court or tribunal is incompetent to determine . The remedy is similar to a remedy by way of mandamus but while prohibition is essentially concerned with jurisdictional matters and is therefore judicial, mandamus is purely ministerial . See Coronado v San Diego, 97 Cal. 440, 32 P. 518.

(Lat. prohibition; from pro and habeo, to hold back). In practice. The name of a writ issued by a superior court, directed to the judge and parties of a suit in an inferior court, commanding them to cease from the prosecution of the same, upon a suggestion that the cause originally, or some collateral matter arising therein, does not belong to that jurisdiction, but to the cognizance of some other court. 3 Bl. Comm. 112; Comyn, Dig.; Bac. Abr.; Saund. Index; Viner, Abr.; 2 Sellon, Prac. 308; Ayliffe, Par. 434; 2 H. Bl. 533. The writ is based on absence of jurisdiction, and will issue only where the lower court has either no jurisdiction of the action (47 Cal. 584; 4 Minn. 366; 60 N. Y. 31), or where, having jurisdiction of a cause, it proceeds to some act beyond its power (20 N. Y. 531). But where the lower court has jurisdiction of all matters involved, mere error in its decision is no ground for prohibition. 100 Mo. 59; 13 Ind. 235. “The writ of prohibition, as its name imports, is one which commands the person to whom it is directed not to do something which, by the suggestion of the relator, the court is informed he is about to do. If the thing be already done, it is manifest that the writ of prohibition cannot undo it, for that would require an affirmative act, and the only effect of a writ of prohibition is to prevent any further proceedings in the prohibited direction.” 4 Wall. (U. S.) 159.

noun

• ban
• banishment
• bar
• barrier
• block
• check
• circumscription
• constraint
• counterorder
• curb
• debarment
• denial
• determent
• deterrence
• deterrent
• disallowance
• discouragement
• disqualification
• elimination
• embargo
• enforced abstention
• enjoining
• eradication
• estoppel
• exclusion
• forbiddance
• hindrance
• illegality
• illegitimacy
• impediment
• inhibition
• injunction
• interdict
• interdiction
• interdictum
• interference
• limit
• limitation
• negation
• nonadmission
• noninclusion
• obstacle
• obstruction
• ostracism
• outlawry
• preclusion
• prevention
• proscription
• refusal
• rejection
• repression
• repudiation
• restraint
• restriction
• stay
• stop
• stoppage
• suppression
• taboo
• traversal
• unconstitutionality
• unlawfulness
• veto
• Associated Concepts: injunctions
• restraining orders
• statutory prohibition
• writ of prohibition foreign phrases: Semper qui non prohibet pro se intervenire
• mandare creditur
• He who does not prohibit the intervention of another in his behalf is deemed to have authorized it
• Quando aliquid prohibetur ex directo
• When anything is prohibited directly
• it is also prohibited indirectly

Browse or run a search for Prohibition 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.

Prohibition in Historical Law

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

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

You might be also interested in these legal terms:

Mentioned in these terms

Consultation, Cruel, Embargo, Extraordinary Remedies, Fair Trade Acts, Interdiction, Judicial Review, Oligopoly, Plain View Doctrine, Prerogative Writ, Slot Machine.

Browse

You might be interested in these references tools:

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

Vocabularies (Semantic Web Information)

<

Grammar

This term is a noun.

Etimology of Prohibition

(You may find prohibition at the world legal encyclopedia and the etimology of more terms).

late 14c., “act of prohibiting, a forbidding by authority,” from Anglo-French and Old French prohibition (early 13c.), from Latin prohibitionem (nominative prohibitio) “a hindering, forbidding; legal prohibition,” noun of action from past participle stem of prohibere “hold back, restrain, hinder, prevent,” from pro “away, forth” (see pro-) + habere “to hold” (see habit; this term is also a noun.). Meaning “forced alcohol abstinence” is 1851, American English; in effect nationwide in U.S. as law 1920-1933 under the Volstead Act. People whose youth did not coincide with the twenties never had our reverence for strong drink. Older men knew liquor before it became the symbol of a sacred cause. Kids who began drinking after 1933 take it as a matter of course. … Drinking, we proved to ourselves our freedom as individuals and flouted Congress. We conformed to a popular type of dissent — dissent from a minority. It was the only period during which a fellow could be smug and slopped concurrently. [A.J. Liebling, “Between Meals,” 1959] Related: Prohibitionist.

Prohibition