What does "obiter" mean?

An obiter dictum; a statement from the bench commenting on a point of law which is not necessary for the judgment at hand and therefore has no judicial weight, as opposed to ratio decidendi.

What is a synonym for "obiter"?

Common synonyms include: ratio decidendi.

Obiter

adv, noun

adv, noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1
An obiter dictum; a statement from the bench commenting on a point of law which is not necessary for the judgment at hand and therefore has no judicial weight, as opposed to ratio decidendi.

Adverb

1
Incidentally; in passing. formal, not-comparable
"I will not here stand to discuss obiter, whether stars be causes, or signs; or to apologize for judicial astrology."