Law Dictionary

ordinance

1. Legislation. A law, a statute, a decree.

2. This word is more usually applied to the laws of a corporation, than to the acts of the legislature; as the ordinances of the city of Philadelphia. The following account of the difference between a statute and an ordinance is extracted from Bac. Ab. Statute, A. "Where the proceeding consisted only of a petition from parliament, and an answer from the king, these were entered on the parliament roll; and if the matter was of a public nature, the whole was then styled an ordinance; if, however, the petition and answer were not only of a public, but a novel nature, they were then formed into an act by the king, with the aid of his council and judges, and entered on the statute roll."

3. According to Lord Coke, the difference between a statute and an ordinance is, that the latter has not had the assent of the king, lords, and commons, but is made merely by two of those powers.

Source : Bouvier 1856

Language : English

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