higher law
noun
: a principle of divine or moral law that is considered to be superior to constitutions and enacted legislation
Examples of higher law in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
There is no higher law of overriding morality, and there's also no responsibility.
—
CBS News, 13 July 2024
Sister Megan Rice and her compatriots, Michael Walli and Greg Boertje-Obed, declared this an act of protest and love in the service of a higher law, but the incident prompted a two-week shutdown of the facility, and they were charged and convicted of intending to endanger the national defense.
—Washington Post, 11 Oct. 2021
Measured against the sweep of Anglo-American legal history, judicial review—the power of unelected judges to invalidate, as contrary to higher law, an act of the legislature—was a radical development.
—Raymond Kethledge, WSJ, 29 Nov. 2021
This was expected; such sanctuary was understood purely as moral confrontation, proclaiming a righteous and sheltering higher law.
—Rafil Kroll-Zaidi, The New York Review of Books, 3 Nov. 2020
See all Example Sentences for higher law 
CBS News, 13 July 2024
Sister Megan Rice and her compatriots, Michael Walli and Greg Boertje-Obed, declared this an act of protest and love in the service of a higher law, but the incident prompted a two-week shutdown of the facility, and they were charged and convicted of intending to endanger the national defense.
—Washington Post, 11 Oct. 2021
Measured against the sweep of Anglo-American legal history, judicial review—the power of unelected judges to invalidate, as contrary to higher law, an act of the legislature—was a radical development.
—Raymond Kethledge, WSJ, 29 Nov. 2021
This was expected; such sanctuary was understood purely as moral confrontation, proclaiming a righteous and sheltering higher law.
—Rafil Kroll-Zaidi, The New York Review of Books, 3 Nov. 2020
See all Example Sentences for higher law
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'higher law.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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“Higher law.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/higher%20law. Accessed 12 Sep. 2024.
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