In law and government, de jure (; pronounced as /la/;) describes practices that are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms, regardless of whether the practice exists in reality. The phrase is often used in contrast with de facto ('in fact'), which describes situations that exist in reality, even if not formally recognized.[1]
De jure is a Latin expression composed of the words de (from) and jure (adjective form of jus, meaning 'law').[2] [3]
See also: Unenforced law.
In U.S. law, particularly after Brown v. Board of Education (1954), the difference between de facto segregation (that existed because of voluntary associations and neighborhoods) and de jure segregation (that existed because of local laws) became important distinctions for court-mandated remedial purposes.[4]
Between 1805 and 1914, the ruling dynasty of Egypt was subject to the rulers of the Ottoman Empire but acted as de facto independent rulers who maintained the polite fiction of Ottoman suzerainty. However, starting from around 1882, the rulers had only de jure rule over Egypt, as it had by then become a British puppet state.[5] Thus, by Ottoman law, Egypt was de jure a province of the Ottoman Empire, but de facto was part of the British Empire.
The de jure borders of a country are defined by the area its government claims, but not necessarily controls. Modern examples include Taiwan (claimed but not controlled by China)[6] and Kashmir (claimed by multiple countries).