supreme court

noun

often capitalized S&C

1

: the highest judicial tribunal in a political unit (such as a nation or state)

2

: a court of original jurisdiction in New York state subordinate to a final court of appeals

Examples of supreme court in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The supreme court of South Korea upheld a ruling on Thursday that granted spousal benefits to LGBT relationships. —Washington Examiner Staff, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 18 July 2024

During a surge in attacks on the judiciary around that time, the state supreme court in Colorado was shaky about its authority to decide whether Trump should be removed from the state's ballots. —David Faris, Newsweek, 10 July 2024

But the state recently became the center of a fierce ballot over access after its supreme court ruled that an 1864 law outlawing the procedure, except when necessary to save the mother's life, could be enforced. —Melissa Quinn, CBS News, 3 July 2024

The growing presence of cash in state supreme court races may affect which judges run for election, Gill said. —Faith E. Pinho, Los Angeles Times, 29 May 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1686, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

supreme court

noun

: the highest court in a political unit (as the U.S. or one of its states)

Legal Definition

supreme court

noun

su·​preme court

1

: the highest court in a nation or state

specifically, capitalized S&C : the highest court in the judicial branch of the U.S. government that has original jurisdiction over controversies involving ambassadors or other ministers or consuls but whose main activity is as the court of last resort exercising appellate jurisdiction over cases involving federal law

2

capitalized S&C : a court of original jurisdiction in New York

Note: The court of last resort in New York is the Court of Appeals.