IDEM - The Law Mind Legal Dictionary

IDEMAuthored

The Law Mind • 891 words

Definition

Latin: "the same." Used in legal writing and citation to refer to something already named or identified — most commonly the same volume, book, page, authority, or party just mentioned. Abbreviated id.

Lord Coke distinguished two senses of the word: idem syllabis seu verbis (the same in syllables or words — formal, textual identity) and idem re et sensu (the same in substance and in sense — substantive identity). This distinction carried practical weight in pleading and statutory construction, where the question was whether two expressions were literally identical or merely equivalent in meaning.

In old common law practice, idem also functioned as a substitute for "the said" or "the aforesaid" when referring back to a party or matter previously named in a pleading or record — parallel in function, though technically distinguished from praedictus (which carried the same general sense but was used differently in formal entries).

Common Language

Modern common usage (Wiktionary): "The same."

Historical common usage (Webster's 1913): "The same; the same as above; — often abbreviated id."

The gap here is narrow but real. In ordinary writing, idem is simply an emphatic or formal way of saying "same as what was just said." In legal usage, the word carries a more precise technical load: it can signal either textual identity or substantive equivalence (Coke's two-part distinction), and its use in pleadings was governed by convention that distinguished it from the functionally similar praedictus. Legal researchers encountering idem in old entries or opinions should not assume the word is merely decorative.

Recognized Forms

/SUBTYPES

Idem syllabis seu verbis — The same in syllables or words. Identity in the literal, textual sense; the precise same language was used.

Idem re et sensu — The same in substance and in meaning. Equivalence in effect even if different words were used. Relevant to questions of variance in pleading and to rules of statutory interpretation.

Idem sonans — Sounding the same. A related but distinct doctrine: two names or words are idem sonans if, though spelled differently, they are substantially identical in pronunciation. Applied particularly to the spelling of names in indictments, deeds, and other instruments where an exact match was required. A variance in spelling did not defeat the instrument if the names were idem sonans. (See RELATED TERMS.)

Ibidem (ibid.) — Not a form of idem, but a companion term. Ibidem means "in the very same place" — the same section, page, or book just cited. Ibid. refers to the identical source and location; id. (idem) refers to the same source but may indicate a different page or passage within it. The two are frequently confused in citation practice.

Why It Matters in Research

Researchers encounter idem most often in two distinct contexts, and conflating them creates problems.

First, in citation strings: id. is the standard abbreviation for idem and signals that the immediately preceding authority is being cited again. In historical legal sources, the full Latin form appears where modern practice would use the abbreviation. The distinction between id. (same source, possibly different location) and ibid. (same source, same location) matters when reconstructing the precise citation a historical writer intended.

Second, in old pleadings and case records: idem was a term of art used in formal entries to refer back to a party or matter already identified. It was technically distinguishable from praedictus, though both served a "said" or "aforesaid" function. Burrill and Townshend's Pleadings (cited in multiple dictionary sources) explain this distinction in the context of common law entry practice. Researchers working with pre-nineteenth-century pleading records should not treat the two as freely interchangeable.

The Coke distinction between syllabis/verbis and re et sensu matters most in statutory construction and pleading variance research. Whether two statements were "the same" in the strict textual sense or only the same in substance could determine whether a pleading survived demurrer or whether a statutory term applied.

The idem sonans doctrine is a live research area in its own right — particularly in criminal law history, where misspelling of a defendant's name in an indictment was a frequent ground for challenge.

Historical Dictionary Support

The four source dictionaries converge on the core meaning without significant disagreement. All trace to Lord Coke's two-part distinction, and three quote or paraphrase the same passage from 10 Coke 124a. Burrill adds the maxim idem semper proximo antecedenti refertur — "idem always refers to the next antecedent" (Co. Litt. 20b, 385b) — a rule of construction explaining how the word operates in a chain of text: it reaches back to the nearest prior referent, not to a more distant one. Black's (both editions) and Burrill flag the distinction from praedictus in old entries, citing Townshend on Pleadings.

Anderson's is the most practical of the four for citation use, explicitly noting the abbreviation id. and drawing the contrast with ibidem/ibid. The historical dictionaries do not address the modern citation convention in any depth, which is where researchers most commonly encounter the term today. The Coke distinction between syllabis/verbis and re et sensu is preserved across all sources but rarely unpacked — it was evidently assumed to be familiar to the intended reader.

IDEMmain

Black's Law Dictionary • 1891

Lat. The same. According to Lord Coke, "idem" has two significations, sc., idem syllabis seu verbis, (the same in syllables or words,) and idem re et sensu, (the same in substance and in sense.) 10 Coke, 124a. In old practice. The said, or aforesaid; said, aforesaid. Distinguished from “præ- dictus" in old entries, though having the same general signification. Townsh. Pl. 15, 16. Idem agens et patiens esse non po- test. Jenk. Cent. 40. The same person can- not be both agent and patient; ¿. e., the doer and person to whom the thing is done. Idem est facere, et non prohibere cum possis; et qui non prohibit, cum pro- hibere possit, in culpâ est, (aut jubet.) 3 Inst. 158. To commit, and not to prohibit when in your power, is the same thing; and he who does not prohibit when he can pro- hibit is in fault, or does the same as ordering it to be done. Idem est nihil dicere, et insufficienter dicere. It is the same thing to say noth- ing, and to say a thing insufficiently. 2 Inst. 178. To say a thing in an insufficient man- J K L IDEM EST NON ESSE, ETC. ner is the same as not to say it at all. Ap- plied to the plea of a prisoner. Id. fdem est non esse, et non apparere. It is the same thing not to be as not to ap- pear. Jenk. Cent. 207. Not to appear is the same thing as not to be. Broom, Max. 165. Idem est non probari et non esse; non deficit jus, sed probatio. What is not proved and what does not exist are the same; it is not a defect of the law, but of proof. IDIOTA INQUIRENDO, WRIT DE

IDEMmain

Anderson's Dictionary of Law • 1890

L. The same. Referring to a volume, the same series or set; also, the same book or page. Abbreviated id. Compare Is. Ibidem. In the very same place: the same section, page, or book. Abbreviated ibid., ib. Idem sonans. Sounding the same; substantially identical in sound. Plural idem sonantia. Applies to the names of persons substantially the same in sound, though different in spelling. In searches for liens, all spellings of a name which are pronounced alike are to be noted; and in pleadings, substantial identity in sound is generally sufficient. Difference of meaning in the original language, as in the German, is not material. Appearance and sound, alone, are important. The initial being the same, allowance must be made for slight differences in the spellingto which the eye will be directed. Then, a slight difference should put one on inquiry. But the rule does not apply to judgments entered in different initials from those which are usual in English: as, in Yoest for Joest." 1 Wood v. Fowler, 26 Kan. 690 (1882), cases: 14 Rep. 267. Myer v. Whitaker, 15 Abb. N. C. 176 (1878), cases; Stevens v. Kelley, 78 Me. 450 (1886), cases: 35 Alb. Law J. 42-3 (1887), cases. Examples of not fatal variances: Bupp and Bopp; 1 Charleston and Charlestown; Heckman and Hackman; Hutson and Hudson; Japheth and Japhath; Jeffers and Jeffries; Lewis and Louis; Penryn and Pennyrine; & Ricketts, Rickets, and Ricket; Shaffer and Shafer; 10 Woolley and Wolley.11 Examples of fatal variances: Hanthorn and Hawthorn; 12 Spintz and Sprinz; 13 Whortman and Workman.14 A name need not be correctly spelled in an indict ment. When substantially the same sound is preserved, variant orthography makes no difference. 16 Whether one name sounds like another may be a question for a jury.18 If the two names, spelled differently, do not neces sarily sound alike, the question whether they are idem sonans is one of fact for the jury.17 See NAME, 1.

IDEMmain

Burrill's Law Dictionary • 1870

L. Lat. In old practice. The said, or aforesaid; said, aforesaid. Distinguished from prædictus, in old entries, though having the same general signification. Towns. Pl. 15, 16. Idem semper proximo antecedenti refertur. Idem always refers to the next antecedent. Co. Litt. 20 b, 385 b. Lat. The same. According to Lord Coke, idem has two significations, sc. idem syllabis seu verbis, (the same in syllables or words,) and idem re et sensu, the same in substance and in sense. 10 Co. 124 a, Case of the Mayor and Burgesses of Lynn. Idem agens et patiens esse non potest. The same person cannot be both agent and pabefore a court, to be the same as it is claimed or charged to be. Burr. Circ. Evid. 631. The act or process of proving a person charged with a crime to be the same person who actually committed it. Id. 635, et seq. The act or process of proving an article found in the possession of a person charged with larceny or robbery, to be the same with the article charged to have been stolen. Id. 651, et seq.

IDEMpron.

Websters Unabridged Dictionary (1913) • 1913

The same; the same as above; -- often abbreviated id.

idempron

Wiktionary (English) • 2026

Wiktionary contributors • CC BY-SA 4.0 • via Kaikki
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The same.

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