precedent
an earlier example that guides later cases
Roots
- ced / cess / ceed: go, approach, yield, move back, or stop
- pre-: before, earlier, or in front
Other words with the ced / cess / ceed root
A precedent is what has gone before and now guides what comes after.
The judge relied on precedent rather than personal preference.
Precedent turns sequence into authority. The earlier case does not merely sit in the past; it becomes a path that later decisions may have to walk.