Definition
A transitional adverb used in legal writing to introduce an additional point that reinforces, extends, or supplements what has just been stated. "Moreover" signals that the following material is not merely cumulative but adds weight or further support to the preceding argument or proposition. In legal drafting and judicial opinions, it functions as a logical connective indicating additive reasoning rather than contrast or qualification.
Common Language
Modern common usage (Wiktionary): In addition to what has been said.
Historical common usage (Webster's 1913): Beyond what has been said; further; besides; in addition; furthermore; also; likewise.
The common and legal meanings are essentially identical in substance. However, in legal writing the word carries a subtle rhetorical weight beyond its dictionary sense: it typically signals not merely addition but escalation — the point that follows is meant to strengthen, not just supplement, the preceding one. Attorneys and judges use "moreover" to distinguish reinforcing additions from neutral ones, where "also" or "additionally" might otherwise serve.
Common Confusion
"Moreover," "furthermore," "additionally," and "also" are frequently used interchangeably in legal drafting, but careful practitioners distinguish them. "Moreover" and "furthermore" both carry an escalating or reinforcing connotation, while "additionally" and "also" are neutral accretions. "However," "nevertheless," and "notwithstanding" introduce contrast rather than addition and should never substitute for "moreover." Misuse of these connectives can obscure logical structure in briefs and opinions, making it difficult for a reader to determine whether an argument is being strengthened or merely extended.
Why It Matters in Research
"Moreover" is a function word of legal drafting, not a term of art with independent legal meaning. When researching historical legal documents, a reader should treat it as a structural signal: its presence indicates that the author considered the following material additive and reinforcing, not a new line of argument. In older case law and equity pleadings, connective language of this kind sometimes carried technical procedural significance — certain forms of pleading required specific transitional language to introduce new matter — but "moreover" itself was not a term of art in that technical sense.
Researchers parsing historical opinions, briefs, or instruments should watch for the word as an indicator of argumentative architecture. In a long judicial opinion, "moreover" near the end of a section often marks the court's strongest secondary ground — the point the court is adding to make the holding more robust. These secondary grounds can be legally significant when the primary holding is later narrowed or distinguished.
Anderson's cross-reference to ALSO correctly identifies that "moreover" functions as a synonym in legal usage. Researchers should apply equivalent interpretive treatment to both words when analyzing document structure.
Bouvier's entry under this heading is an editorial artifact: the text reproduced under "moreover" in some editions is actually displaced content about deed descriptions and the phrase "more or less," which is a separate term of art in property conveyancing. Researchers encountering the Bouvier text should not treat it as a definition of "moreover" in any legal sense; it reflects a typographical or indexing error in certain print editions.
Historical Dictionary Support
Anderson's Dictionary of Law disposes of the term by cross-reference to ALSO, correctly signaling that no independent legal definition is needed. Bouvier's Law Dictionary, in the edition consulted, presents text that appears to be misattributed — the content concerning deed descriptions and "more or less" language in conveyances is substantively unrelated to the adverb "moreover" and likely represents a printing or compilation error. Neither source treats "moreover" as a legal term of art. This is appropriate: the word is a tool of legal composition, not a concept requiring doctrinal definition. Historical legal dictionaries universally omit or redirect it, which is itself instructive — the term's legal significance is wholly structural.