rule of law

noun phrase

: a situation in which the laws of a country are obeyed by everyone

The courts uphold the rule of law.

Examples of rule of law in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Rwanda Deportation Bill: Britain’s Conservative government finally won passage of its flagship immigration policy, enshrining a Rwanda deportation bill that human-rights campaigners say is inhumane and legal critics say has corroded the country’s reputation for rule of law. —Megan Specia, New York Times, 23 Apr. 2024

The attack on democracy, the attack on the rule of law, will also sweep away the freedoms that higher education has won over the last 100 years. —Michael S. Roth, TIME, 23 Apr. 2024

Reinert, who clerked for former Justice Stephen Breyer, said the justices will try to probe what level of immunity would balance the rule of law against the need for presidential protection against baseless and harassing prosecutions. —USA TODAY, 23 Apr. 2024

But crucially, today’s France enjoys the rule of law and no longer threatens its neighbors. —Stephen Kotkin, Foreign Affairs, 18 Apr. 2024

That is a direct result of the lack of commitment to the rule of law and holding criminals accountable. —Danielle Wallace, Fox News, 9 Apr. 2024

Caught by museum staff, and brought before the inspector of police Detective Larramendi — their improbable explanation of a transcendent night in the museum defies reality and his attempts to pin a rule of law, any rule, on an escapade that defines what dreams are made of. —Marcela Davison Aviles, NPR, 8 Apr. 2024

Fico, who took power for the fourth time last October, has turned the country’s foreign policy to more pro-Russian views and initiated reforms of criminal law and the media, which have raised concerns over weakening the rule of law. —Reuters, NBC News, 7 Apr. 2024

After years of backing corrupt and undemocratic leaders, the U.S. government has a chance to back Haitians promoting democracy and the rule of law. —Pierre Esperance, Foreign Affairs, 2 Apr. 2024

Legal Definition

rule of law

1

: an authoritative legal doctrine, principle, or precept applied to the facts of an appropriate case

adopting the rule of law that is most persuasive in light of precedent, reason and policy

—Wright v. Wright, 904 P.2d 403 (1995)

2

: government by law : adherence to due process of law