Jurisdictionally

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. In a way that concerns the power of a legal system to make judgments
2. Relating to the extent of control held by a law authority over cases
3. In a manner that relates to the official power held by a court or legal body to decide cases

Etymology: Jurisdictionally is a plain stacking of suffixes, and its interest lies in the layers beneath it. The noun "jurisdiction" comes from Latin "iurisdictio," literally "law-saying" or the administering of law, built from "ius" (law, right) and "dictio" (a saying or speaking). English took "jurisdiction" from Latin, and "jurisdictional" was formed in English by adding the adjective suffix "-al," a route that passed through Old French "-el" and Latin "-alis," which denoted pertaining to. The final step is the adverbial suffix "-ly," which descends from Old English "-līċe," itself rooted in the noun "līc" meaning body or form, so "-ly" originally meant "in the shape of" or "in the manner of." Attaching it to "jurisdictional" produces an adverb describing action carried out within a court's or legal body's authority. The word is a modern formation with no older history of its own, so its meaning rests entirely on the sense of the adjective it is built from.

Synonyms: legally, authoritatively