A. A law or practice that, although not formally abolished, is no longer used, observed, or enforced.
Listen to pronunciationLegal Definition -
1. A law or practice that, although not formally abolished, is no longer used observed, or enforced.
2. A piece of mail that can be neither delivered or returned because it lacks correct addresses for both the intended recipient and the sender.
Black's Law Dictionary® Eighth Edition © 2004
Current Usage -
GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews/4 Sep) – Support continue to pour for the tuna industry which is facing a host of problems that has threatened to affect production of canned and processed tuna products. On Thursday, Sen. Edgardo Angara said he will make sure P250 million of the agriculture department budget for 2009 will go to the modernization of the tuna industry. The senator, who heads the Senate agriculture committee, said he will revive the fund intended for the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) which became a "dead letter law." Tuna production, already on the decline over the last two years, is expected to further drop as the government will start restricting the use of fine mesh nets in deep sea fishing and in municipal waters. Edwin G. Espejo/MindaNews contributor Friday, 05 September 2008 Mindonow News