Definition
A Latin term meaning "it seems," "it appears," "it is considered," or "it is supposed." Used in legal writing, maxims, and judicial opinions to signal that a proposition follows from inference, apparent evidence, or legal presumption rather than from direct proof or explicit authority. The term does not assert certainty; it marks a conclusion that appears to follow from the circumstances as presented.
Videtur appears most often embedded within Latin legal maxims rather than as a standalone operative term. Its most familiar context is the maxim *Qui tacet consentire videtur* — "He who is silent is considered to consent" — where the term carries the specific sense of a legal presumption arising from conduct.
Common Language
Modern common usage (Wiktionary): "Videtur" has no independent entry in modern general English dictionaries. It is a Latin third-person singular present passive indicative of *videre* (to see), meaning "it is seen" or "it appears."
Historical common usage (Webster's 1913): Not entered as an English word. Webster's treats it as untranslated Latin.
The gap worth noting: In common Latin usage the word is merely descriptive — something appears to be the case. In legal usage, videtur often carries normative weight. When embedded in a legal maxim, "it is considered" or "it is supposed" shades toward a legal fiction or presumption — what the law treats as so, not merely what seems observably true.
Why It Matters in Research
Researchers will not encounter *videtur* as a freestanding legal doctrine or cause of action. It functions as a grammatical marker within Latin maxims, and its significance lies in understanding the epistemic weight of those maxims.
The principal research trap is treating *videtur* maxims as binding rules when they are often merely presumptive principles or rhetorical conventions. The maxim *Qui tacet consentire videtur*, for instance, was invoked frequently in early common law and equity reasoning to support inferences of assent, but courts have long cautioned that silence does not universally imply consent. The maxim illustrates the problem neatly: the *videtur* construction signals a rebuttable legal presumption, not an absolute rule.
In historical sources — Year Books, early equity reports, and treatises through the eighteenth century — Latin maxims containing *videtur* appear with some regularity and were treated with considerable authority. By the nineteenth century, English and American courts grew more skeptical of maxim-based reasoning, and the persuasive weight of *videtur* constructions diminished correspondingly. Researchers working in pre-1800 materials should be alert to this difference in judicial culture.
When searching the Law Mind corpus, *videtur* will surface primarily in: (1) Latin maxim collections and digests; (2) early equity and common law opinions quoting maxims in the original Latin; (3) treatises on evidence and presumptions, where the consent maxim is most frequently analyzed. Cross-referencing the specific maxim in which *videtur* appears is nearly always more productive than searching the term in isolation.
Historical Dictionary Support
Burrill's Law Dictionary provides the core entry: "Lat. It is seen; it appears; it seems; it is considered; it is supposed." Burrill illustrates with *Qui tacet consentire videtur*, which is the term's most legally consequential application in the Anglo-American tradition.
The range of English translations Burrill offers — from the purely perceptual ("it is seen") to the normative ("it is considered," "it is supposed") — accurately reflects how the term functions differently depending on the maxim it inhabits. Where the context is evidentiary, "it appears" captures the meaning. Where the context is presumptive, "it is considered" is closer to the legal operation being described.
Historical dictionaries do not treat *videtur* as a term with independent doctrinal content, and that framing is correct. Its interest to legal historians is as a window into how Latin legal maxims were constructed and how courts used presumptive language. Researchers seeking deeper treatment should look to works on Latin maxims generally — Broom's *Legal Maxims* being the standard historical reference — rather than to dictionary entries for the term alone.