Fiat justitia is a Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

 phrase, meaning “Let justice be done". Historically in England, a warrant for a writ of error in Parliament or later a petition of right

Petition of right

In English law, a petition of right was a remedy available to subjects to recover property from the Crown.Before the Crown Proceedings Act 1947, the British Crown could not be sued in contract...

 in the courts could be brought only after the king, or on his behalf the Home Secretary

Home Secretary

The Secretary of State for the Home Department, commonly known as the Home Secretary, is the minister in charge of the Home Office of the United Kingdom, and one of the country's four Great Offices of State...

, had endorsed fiat justitia on a petition for such a warrant. It was a means of granting leave to appeal by exercise of the royal prerogative

Royal Prerogative

The royal prerogative is a body of customary authority, privilege, and immunity, recognized in common law and, sometimes, in civil law jurisdictions possessing a monarchy as belonging to the sovereign alone. It is the means by which some of the executive powers of government, possessed by and...

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Famous modern uses

"Fiat Justitia" appears at the bottom of the 1835 portrait of Chief Justice of the United States

Chief Justice of the United States

The Chief Justice of the United States is the head of the United States federal court system and the chief judge of the Supreme Court of the United States. The Chief Justice is one of nine Supreme Court justices; the other eight are the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States...

 John Marshall

John Marshall

John Marshall was the Chief Justice of the United States whose court opinions helped lay the basis for American constitutional law and made the Supreme Court of the United States a coequal branch of government along with the legislative and executive branches...

 by Rembrandt Peale

Rembrandt Peale

Rembrandt Peale was an American artist and museum keeper. A prolific portrait painter, he was especially acclaimed for his likenesses of presidents George Washington and Thomas Jefferson...

, which hangs in a conference room at the Supreme Court Building

United States Supreme Court building

The Supreme Court Building is the seat of the Supreme Court of the United States. It is situated in Washington, D.C. at 1 First Street, NE, on the block immediately east of the United States Capitol. The building is under the jurisdiction of the Architect of the Capitol. On May 4, 1987, the Supreme...

 in Washington

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

. It is also the motto of the University of California, Hastings College of the Law

University of California, Hastings College of the Law

University of California, Hastings College of the Law is a public law school in San Francisco, California, located in the Civic Center neighborhood....

 and the Massachusetts Bar Association

Massachusetts Bar Association

The Massachusetts Bar Association is a voluntary, non-profit bar association in Massachusetts with a headquarters on West Street in Boston's Downtown Crossing. The MBA also has a Western Massachusetts office....

, and appears on the official seals of both institutions.

"Fiat Justitia" is the motto of Britain's Royal Air Force Police

Royal Air Force Police

The Royal Air Force Police is the Service Police branch of the Royal Air Force. It was formed on 1 April 1918, when the RAF was formed by the merger of the Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Service . It is responsible for the policing of all service personnel much like there RN or Army...

 as well as the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court

Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court

The Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court is a superior Court of record for the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States , including six independent states: Antigua and Barbuda, the Commonwealth of Dominica, Grenada, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and three British...

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