Legislature

4 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Legislature \Leg"is*la`ture\ (l[e^]j"[i^]s*l[=a]`t[-u]r; 135),
     n. [Cf. F. l['e]gislature.]
     The body of persons in a state or kingdom invested with power
     to make and repeal laws; a legislative body.
     [1913 Webster]
  


           Without the concurrent consent of all three parts of
           the legislature, no law is, or can be, made. --Sir M.
                                                    Hale.
     [1913 Webster]
  
     Note: The legislature of Great Britain consists of the Lords
           and Commons, with the king or queen, whose sanction is
           necessary to every bill before it becomes a law. The
           legislatures of most of the United States consist of
           two houses or branches; but the sanction or consent of
           the governor is required to give their acts the force
           of law, or a concurrence of two thirds of the two
           houses after he has refused his sanction and assigned
           his objections.
           [1913 Webster]
  
     Note: The legislatures of some of the more important states
           having constitutional government are as follows, the
           general name (or a translation of it) of the
           legislative body collectively being given under the
           heading legislature, or parliament: StateLegislature,
           or parliamentUpper House[colret]NameNumber of members
           -- how chosen or composed -- term of officeLower
           House[colret]NameNumber of members -- suffrage -- term
           of office
  
           -----------------------------------------------------------------
           ArgentinaNational CongressSenate30 -- 2 from each
           provincew and 2 from capital -- 9 yearsHouse of
           Deputies120 (1 to 33,000) -- Manhood -- 4 years
           AustriaReichsrath BelgiumThe Chambers BrazilNational
           Congress ChileNational Congress DenmarkRigsdag
           FranceNational Assembly German EmpireImperial
           legislature *Great BritainParliamentHouse of LordsAbout
           600House of CommonsAbout 670 -- 7 years, or until
           dissolution Greece HungaryOrz['a]g-gy["u]l['e]s
           ItalyParliament JapanImperial Diet MexicoCongress
           NetherlandsStates-General #NorwayStorthing
           PortugalCortes Geraes (general Assembly)
           PrussiaLandtagHerrenhausNo limit -- very various
           classes -- For different termsAbgeordnetenhaus433 --
           Indirect election, general suffrage[sect] -- 5 years,
           or until dissolution SpainCortes SwedenDiet
           SwitzerlandBundesversammlung United
           StatesCongressSenate92(1908) -- 6 yearsHouse of
           Representatives391 (1908) -- 2 years.
           ----------------------------------------------------------------
           *In the self-governing colonies of Great Britain the
           legislative body usually consists of two chambers, the
           names of the legislature and the chambers varying. Thus
           in Australia the Federal Parliament is composed of the
           Senate and the House of Commons, in New Zealand the
           General Assembly is composed of the Legislative Council
           and the House of Representatives, etc. #Members of the
           Storthing are chosen for three years by direct election
           by manhood suffrage, forty-one being elected from the
           towns and eighty-two from the rural districts. The
           Storthing on assembling divides into the Lagthing
           including one fourth and the Odelsthing including three
           fourths of the total membership of the Storthing. All
           new laws are laid first before the Odelsthing. If the
           two houses do not agree they vote in joint session, a
           majority of two thirds of those voting being necessary
           to a decision. [sect] While theoretically general, the
           suffrage is so classified as often practically to
           disfranchise those who are not property holders.
           [Webster 1913 Suppl.]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  legislature
       n : persons who make or amend or repeal laws [syn: {legislative
           assembly}, {general assembly}, {law-makers}]

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  50 Moby Thesaurus words for "legislature":
     British Cabinet, Sanhedrin, US Cabinet, act, advisory body,
     assembly, association, bench, board, body of advisers,
     borough council, brain trust, cabinet, camarilla, chamber,
     city council, common council, concurrent resolution, conference,
     congress, constitution, consultative assembly, council,
     council fire, council of ministers, council of state,
     council of war, county council, court, deliberative assembly, diet,
     directory, divan, enaction, enactment, joint resolution, junta,
     kitchen cabinet, lawmaking, legislation, parish council, passage,
     passing, privy council, resolution, soviet, staff, syndicate,
     synod, tribunal
  
  

From Bouvier's Law Dictionary, Revised 6th Ed (1856) [bouvier]:

  LEGISLATURE, government. That body of men in the state which has the power 
  of making laws. 
       2. By the Constitution of the United States, art. 1, s. 1, all 
  legislative powers granted by it are vested in a congress of the United 
  States, which shall consist of a senate and house of representatives. 
       3. It requires the consent of a majority of each branch of the 
  legislature in order to enact a law, and then it must be approved by the 
  president of the United States, or in case of his refusal, by two-thirds of 
  each house. Const. U. S. art. 1, s. 7, 2. 
       4. Most of the constitutions of the several states, contain provisions 
  nearly similar to this. In general, the legislature will not exercise 
  judicial functions; yet the use of supreme power upon particular occasions, 
  is not without example. Vide Judicial.