A privilege is a certain entitlement to
immunity granted by the state or another authority to a restricted group, either by birth or on a conditional basis. Land-titles and
taxi medallions are examples of transferable privilege – they can be revoked in certain circumstances. In modern democratic states, a ''privilege'' is conditional and granted only after birth. By contrast, a ''
right
Rights are law, legal, social, or ethics, ethical principles of freedom or Entitlement (fair division), entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people according to some legal sy ...
'' is an inherent, irrevocable entitlement held by all citizens or all human beings from the moment of birth. Various examples of old
common law
Common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law primarily developed through judicial decisions rather than statutes. Although common law may incorporate certain statutes, it is largely based on prece ...
privilege still exist – to title deeds, for example. Etymologically, a privilege (''privilegium'') means a "private law", or rule relating to a specific individual or institution.
The principles of conduct that members of the legal profession observe in their practice are called legal ethics.
Boniface
Boniface, OSB (born Wynfreth; 675 –5 June 754) was an English Benedictine monk and leading figure in the Anglo-Saxon mission to the Germanic parts of Francia during the eighth century. He organised significant foundations of the church i ...
's
abbey of Fulda, to cite an early and prominent example, was granted ''
privilegium'', setting the abbot in direct contact with the pope, bypassing the jurisdiction of the local bishop.
One of the objectives of the
French Revolution was the abolition of privilege. This meant the removal of separate laws for different
social class
A social class or social stratum is a grouping of people into a set of Dominance hierarchy, hierarchical social categories, the most common being the working class and the Bourgeoisie, capitalist class. Membership of a social class can for exam ...
es (
nobility
Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...
,
clergy
Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...
, and ordinary people), instead subjecting everyone to the same common law. Such privileges were abolished by the
National Constituent Assembly on August 4, 1789.
See also
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Executive privilege
Executive privilege is the right of the president of the United States and other members of the executive branch to maintain confidential communications under certain circumstances within the executive branch and to resist some subpoenas and ot ...
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Parliamentary privilege
Parliamentary privilege is a legal immunity enjoyed by members of certain legislatures, in which legislators are granted protection against civil or criminal liability for actions done or statements made in the course of their legislative duties ...
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Privilege (canon law)
Privilege in the canon law of the Roman Catholic Church is the legal concept whereby someone is exempt from the ordinary operation of the law over time for some specific purpose.
Definition
Papal privileges resembled dispensations, since both i ...
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Privilege (evidence)
In the law of evidence, a privilege is a rule of evidence that allows the holder of the privilege to refuse to disclose information or provide evidence about a certain subject or to bar such evidence from being disclosed or used in a judicial or ...
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Privilège du blanc
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Privilege of peerage
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Social privilege
Social privilege is an advantage or entitlement that benefits individuals belonging to certain groups, often to the detriment of others. Privileged groups can be advantaged based on social class, wealth, education, caste, age, height, skin col ...
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Szlachta's privileges
References
{{Authority control
Legal ethics
Legal history
Public choice theory