Required, controlled, or enacted by statute or law. Relating to or consisting of statutes rather than common law or regulations.
From Latin 'statutum' meaning 'something set up or established,' from 'statuere' meaning 'to set up, establish.' Entered English in the 15th century, evolving from describing things established by decree to specifically referring to written laws.
The word carries the weight of formal authority - when something is statutory, it's not just a suggestion or tradition, but has the full force of written law behind it. Interestingly, statutory law often overrides common law, representing society's shift from custom-based to written legal systems.
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