law-hand

IPA/lˈɔːhˈand/
IPA/lˈɔːhˈænd/

law-hand — noun

1. a formal style of handwriting that English legal clerks used from the 1500s to t

1.nounC2
Definition

a formal style of handwriting that English legal clerks used from the 1500s to the 1700s when producing official copies of deeds, contracts, and court records

Example

The museum displayed a deed written in law-hand alongside a modern typed copy.

collocation: written in law-hand

Few people today can read law-hand without taking a special course first.

Common collocations
  • written in law-hand
  • read law-hand
  • study law-hand
  • decipher law-hand
  • trained in law-hand
Synonyms
  • court hand

    a related but slightly less formal script used in English court records; sometimes confused with law-hand

  • engrossing hand

    the general term for any clear, formal script used for official documents; law-hand was one type of engrossing hand

Grammar Patterns

law-hand + verb (singular)

written in law-hand

read / study law-hand

Usage Note

A historical term referring specifically to English legal documents from the 16th–18th centuries. Not used for modern handwriting or for legal scripts outside England.

Common Mistakes

The lawyer wrote today's contract in law-hand.
The original 1650 deed was written in law-hand.
Law-hand refers to a specific historical script, not to modern legal handwriting.

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Law-hand, court hand, secretary hand, italic hand, and engrossing hand all describe historical English handwriting styles, but they differ in use and formality. Law-hand was the most formal script reserved for engrossing final legal documents such as deeds and contracts. Court hand was a less elaborate script used for day-to-day court records. Secretary hand was the cursive style ordinary educated people wrote in during the 1500s–1600s — much faster but harder to read today. Italic hand (influenced by Renaissance Italian script) was clearer and more readable; it gradually replaced both secretary hand and law-hand for legal work by the 1700s. Engrossing hand is a broader category: any clear, formal script used for official documents. Law-hand was one specific type of engrossing hand. For example, a property deed from 1640 would be in law-hand, while the judge's personal notes from the same case might be in court hand.

court handsecretary handitalic handengrossing hand

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • written in law-hand
  • trained in law-hand
  • a specimen of law-hand

Prepositions

Etymology

Old EnglishEnglish

A compound noun formed from 'law' (from Old English lagu, meaning 'rule, ordinance') and 'hand' (from Old English hand), where 'hand' carried the sense of 'handwriting, style of script.' The term emerged in England during the 16th century, when legal scribes developed a distinctive formal script that set official legal documents apart from everyday writing.