Reception statute
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Reception statute authority
A law by which a U.S. state formally adopted the English common law that existed as of a chosen cut-off date, except where the state's own constitution or statutes change it.
Technical: A statutory or constitutional provision in which a state 'receives' the common law and often the statutes of England in force as of a specified date (the reception date), making them part of state law to the extent not repugnant to the state's own constitution and enactments.
Founding-era note: Reception dates and terms vary by state — many keyed reception to a date around the Revolution (e.g., pre-1776 English law), so the English common law in force in one state is not identical to that in another.
Sources: Cornell LII — Reception statute
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