Quo warranto

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Quo warranto (Medieval Latin for "by what warrant?") is one of the prerogative writs,
the one that requires the person to whom it is directed to show what authority he has for
exercising some right or power (or "franchise") he claims to hold.

Quo Warranto had its origins in an attempt by King Edward I of England to investigate
and recover royal lands, rights, and franchises in England, in particular those lost during
the reign of his father, King Henry III of England. From 1278 to 1294, Edward
dispatched justices throughout England to inquire “by what warrant” English lords held
their lands and exercised their jurisdictions (often the right to hold a court and collect its
profits). Initially, the justices demanded written proof in the form of charters, but
resistance and the unrecorded nature of many grants forced Edward to accept those rights
peacefully exercised since 1189. Later, Quo Warranto functioned as a court order (or
"writ") to show proof of authority; for example, demanding that someone acting as the
sheriff prove that the king had actually appointed him to that office (literally, "By whose
warrant are you the sheriff?").

In the U.S.A. today, quo warranto usually arises in a civil case as a plaintiff's claim (and
thus a "cause of action" instead of a writ) that some governmental or corporate official
was not validly elected to that office or is wrongfully exercising powers beyond (or ultra
vires) those authorized by statute or by the corporation's charter.

In some jurisdictions which have enacted judicial review statutes, such as Queensland,
the prerogative writ of quo warranto has been abolished [1].

[edit] External links

 Missouri Bar Newsjournalist Handbook on the Law and Courts
 Excerpts from treatises on Quo Warranto
 Presumption of Nonauthority and Unenumerated Rights

[edit] References
 Michael Prestwich, Edward I (London: Methuen, 1988, updated edition Yale
University Press, 1997 ISBN 0-300-07209-0)
  Michael Prestwich, The Three Edwards: War and State in England 1272-1377
(London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1980, reprinted Routledge 1996) ISBN 0-415-
05133-9

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quo_warranto"

Categories: Latin legal phrases | Prerogative writs

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 This page was last modified 19:26, 6 March 2007.

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