Judgment in error is a judgment rendered by a court of error on a record sent up from an inferior court.

Explanation

(English-origin maxim.) A judgment in error is the decision of an appellate court reviewing the record of a lower court for legal mistakes — it is the mechanism by which errors of law are corrected.

Where this applies

• A convicted defendant appeals to a higher court, which reviews the trial record for legal errors — this appellate review is a judgment in error.
• A state supreme court examines the transcript and rulings from a lower court's trial to determine whether the judge applied the wrong legal standard.
• An appellate panel reviews a case on the record alone, looking for mistakes of law made by the trial court, and issues a judgment in error reversing the conviction.