Overruled

Overruled is a legal term used to indicate that a ruling or objection has been rejected by a court. In trial practice, an attorney may raise an objection to a question, evidence, or line of testimony. If the judge overrules the objection, the objection is denied; the questioned evidence may be admitted or the line of questioning may continue. If the judge sustains the objection, the objection is upheld and the disputed evidence is suppressed or the question restricted.

In appellate practice, overruled can refer to a higher court rejecting a lower court’s ruling. When an appellate court overrules a trial court on a point of law, it typically reverses that ruling. The remedy may be remand for further proceedings or a fresh ruling consistent with the appellate decision. Some jurisdictions distinguish between overrules and reversals, using overrule to indicate rejection of the ruling itself and reversal to denote a broader overturning of the lower court’s decision on the merits.

Usage notes: the term is common in court transcripts and opinions. The opposite form, sustain, is used for objections in trials; affirm or reverse are common in appellate contexts to describe whether the appellate court upholds or overturns the lower court’s ruling. Etymology-wise, overrule derives from over- meaning above or against, and rule, indicating a ruling being adjudged against.