unlawful

Unlawful is an adjective used to describe conduct that is not in accordance with the law. It denotes that an act or condition contravenes statutory provisions, case law, or other legal rules. The term is used across civil, criminal, and administrative contexts and does not by itself determine criminal liability; it simply indicates a breach of the applicable legal framework.

In legal language, unlawful is often contrasted with lawful: lawful means permitted by law, while unlawful means forbidden or unsupported by law. Some legal traditions distinguish illegal as something specifically prohibited by statute or regulation; unlawful can be broader, covering acts that are unlawful in a general sense even if not labeled illegal in statute. Jurisdictional nuance matters: for instance, a police search may be described as unlawful if it breaches constitutional protections, even if no specific statute declares the act illegal.

Common phrases include unlawful conduct, unlawful assembly, unlawful detention, and unlawful business practices. The assessment of unlawfulness depends on the applicable legal framework, including constitutions, statutes, regulations, and common law principles. In civil litigation, unlawfulness can affect remedies such as damages or injunctions; in criminal cases, it can relate to elements of offenses or defenses.

Etymology: unlawful is formed from un- meaning not and lawful, with lawful tracing to the Old English word for law; the prefix un- marks negation. The term has been in use since the Middle English period. Related terms include legal, legality, illegality, illegal, and illegitimate.