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Dissent

To disagree.

To disagree.

The word is used in legal circles to refer to the minority opinion of a judge which runs contrary to the conclusions of the majority in a particular judgment.

For example, in Roe v Wade (410 US 113), the well-known 1973 American abortion decision, two of the nine Supreme Court of the United States judges dissented with a clear majority of 7 striking down a Texan anti-abortion statute. The two dissents, while interesting for the record, didn't matter in the result. A majority was all that was needed in a multi-member Court, and full finality was achieved where the Court is a final court of appeal, as is the case with the USA Supreme Court.


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Unless otherwise noted, this article was written by Lloyd Duhaime, Barrister, Solicitor, Attorney and Lawyer (and Notary Public!). It is not intended to be legal advice and you would be foolhardy to rely on it in respect to any specific situation you or an acquaintance may be facing. In addition, the law changes rapidly and sometimes with little notice so from time to time, an article may not be up to date. Therefore, this is merely legal information designed to educate the reader. If you have a real situation, this information will serve as a good springboard to get legal advice from a lawyer.

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