juridique

Juridique is a French adjective meaning related to law or the legal system. It is used in Francophone legal writing to qualify matters that fall within droit, including statutes, case law, procedures, and regulatory frameworks. In English, the closest equivalents are legal or juridical, with nuance depending on context; juridical tends to appear more in formal or scholarly use.

Etymology and usage notes: the word originates from Latin iuridicus, from ius or jus, meaning law. In practice, juridique helps distinguish legal aspects from other domains such as politics or administration, even though many discussions overlap with public policy or governance.

Common expressions and concepts: système juridique (legal system), droit juridique (the legal field or legal rights), responsabilité juridique (legal responsibility), and entité juridique or personne morale (legal entity or corporate/organizational person). The term is also used to describe actions, aspects, or questions with a recognized legal dimension, for example, une affaire juridique (a legal matter) or un contrat juridique (a legally binding contract). In comparative or international contexts, juridique terms are often translated as legal, while the English term juridical appears mainly in scholarly or specific formal registers.

Relation to broader fields: juridique concerns the normative framework of law, its institutions, and its application. It intersects with philosophy of law, jurisprudence, and public administration, and is closely tied to the study and practice of droit (law) in francophone environments. In English-language texts, juridique concepts are typically conveyed with legal terminology, though the nuance of formal legal theory is sometimes preserved by using juridical.