outside the law
idiom
1
: not agreeing with the law : illegal
actions that may have been outside the law
2
: in an illegal way
Investigators were unable to prove that the business was operating outside the law.
Examples of outside the law in a Sentence
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Many of the governors and other local officials appointed by Karzai have ruled not by virtue of a legal mandate from Kabul but rather through their own local security and economic power bases, which operate outside the law but with the tacit acceptance of Kabul.
—
Stephen Biddle, Foreign Affairs, 1 July 2010
Out of this pain, both women chose to act alone, outside the law, becoming relentless avengers.
—Isabella Wandermurem, Time, 3 June 2025
Demonstrators outside the law offices of Paul Weiss in New York protesting the firm's agreement to do free legal services for the Trump administration, Tuesday, April 22, 2025.
—Sophie Clark, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 June 2025
The pigeons standing in public spaces and flying around in transit terminals and other wide-open structures are like wild creatures living outside the law.
—Ian Frazier, New Yorker, 5 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for outside the law
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Stephen Biddle, Foreign Affairs, 1 July 2010
Out of this pain, both women chose to act alone, outside the law, becoming relentless avengers.
—Isabella Wandermurem, Time, 3 June 2025
Demonstrators outside the law offices of Paul Weiss in New York protesting the firm's agreement to do free legal services for the Trump administration, Tuesday, April 22, 2025.
—Sophie Clark, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 June 2025
The pigeons standing in public spaces and flying around in transit terminals and other wide-open structures are like wild creatures living outside the law.
—Ian Frazier, New Yorker, 5 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for outside the law
Cite this Entry
“Outside the law.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/outside%20the%20law. Accessed 11 Jul. 2025.
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