In the civil law . A species of imperial constitution , being a judgment or sentence given by the emperor upon hearing of a cause, (quod impcrator cog- noscens decrevit.) Inst. 1, 2, 6. In canon law. Au ecclesiastical law , in contradistinction to a secular law, (lex.) 1 Mackeld. Civil Law, p. 81,
Black’s Law Online Dictionary
