amicus curiae

a·mi·cus cu·ri·ae  (-mks kyr-)

n. pl. a·mi·ci curiae (-mk)

A party that is not involved in a particular litigation but that is allowed by the court to advise it on a matter of law directly affecting the litigation.

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[Latin amcus criae : amcus, friend + criae, genitive of cria, court.]

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

amicus curiae - an adviser to the court on some matter of law who is not a party to the case; usually someone who wants to influence the outcome of a lawsuit involving matters of wide public interest friend of the court law, jurisprudence - the collection of rules imposed by authority; "civilization presupposes respect for the law"; "the great problem for jurisprudence to allow freedom while enforcing order" adviser, advisor, consultant - an expert who gives advice; "an adviser helped students select their courses"; "the United States sent military advisors to Guatemala"