Legal Definition and Related Resources of Alderman

(equivalent to “senator” or “senior”). In English Law. An associate to the chief civil magistrate of a corporate town or city. The word was formerly of very extended signification. Spelman enumerates eleven classes of aldermen. Their duties among the Saxons embraced both magisterial and executive power, but would seem to have been rather an appellation of honor, originally, than a distinguishing mark of office. Aldermannus civitatis, burgi sew castellae (alderman of a city, borough, or castle). 1 Sharswood, Bl. Comm. 475, note. Aldermannus comitatus (alderman of the county), who is thought by Spelman to have held an intermediate place between an earl and sheriflF; by others, held the same as the earl. 1 Sharswood, Bl. Comm. 116. AUermannus hundredi seu wapentachii (alderman of a hundred or wapentake). Spelman. Aldermannus regis (alderman of the king) was so called, either because he was appointed by the king, or because he gave the judgment of the king in the premises allotted to him. Aldermannus totius Angliae (alderman of all England). An officer of high rank, whose duties cannot be precisely determined. See Spelman. The aldermen of the city of London were probably originally the chiefs of guilds. See 1 Spence, Eq. Jur. 54, 56. In American Cities. The aldermen are generally a legislative body, having limited judicial powers as a body, as in matters of internal police regulation, laying out and repairing streets, constructing sewers, and the like; though in many cities they hold separate courts, and have magisterial powers to a considerable extent. Consult Spelman; Cowell; 1 Sharswood, Bl. Comm. 116; Reeve, Hist. Eng. Law; Spence, Eq. Jur.; McQuillin Mun. Corp.

What does Alderman mean in American Law?

The definition of Alderman in the law of the United States, as defined by the lexicographer Arthur Leff in his legal dictionary is:

In pre-Norman England, an important nobleman, with substantial judicial functions, e.g., sitting with a Bishop at trial and handling civil causes while the Bishop dealt with spiritual ones.

In the U.S. today, an alderman is a town or city officer, usually a member of a local body with legislative powers.

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

Vocabularies (Semantic Web Information)

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Alderman in Law Enforcement

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

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See Also

• Law Enforcement Officer
• Police Officer
• Law Enforcement Agency

Further Reading

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

English Legal System: Alderman

In the context of the English law, A Dictionary of Law provides the following legal concept of Alderman :

A senior member of a local authority, elected by its directly elected members. Active aldermanic rank now exists only in the *City of London, having been phased out elsewhere by the Local Government Act 1972. County, district, and London borough councils can, however, appoint past members to honorary rank in recognition of eminent service. The term was originally synonymous with ‘elder’ and is of Anglo-Saxon derivatio

Meaning of Alderman

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