metalaw

Etymology

From meta- + law.

metalaw means A proposed set of legal rules regulating relationships between different races in the universe. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 91 out of 100.

Why “metalaw” is a great word

METALAW — [Noun] A speculative framework of legal principles intended to govern relationships between different intelligent species or civilizations in the cosmos. From the prefix meta- (meaning "beyond" or "transcending") + law; coined in 1956 by Andrew G. Haley. Unlike "space law," which codifies human activity in the void, or "natural law," which posits a universal human morality, metalaw is a conscious construction for the utterly alien. It is the silent treaty drafted before first contact, the courtroom built for a defendant whose biology we cannot fathom, and the arbitration of conflicts over resources no human eye has perceived—a testament to our lonely hope that logic, even of the most austere kind, might be the one universal constant.

noun

A proposed set of legal rules regulating relationships between different races in the universe.