retroactivity
nounEtymology From retroactive + -ity.
1
Usually The state or characteristic of being retroactive.
2
Law Usually The application of a law to events that took place before it was made.
- Should the legislation pass with the retroactivity provision, the firm's percentage would apply to the amount already due the states; if not, it would apply to the amount they collect over the next 12 years.1994 May 6, Todd Purdum, “New Yorkers in Congress at War With a Lawyer”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 03 Feb 2023:
- it must be pointed out that the distinction between retroactivity and retrospectivity, while describing a real difference in the verbal form in which retrospective law is expressed, lacks normative and practical significance.2008, Ben Juratowitch, Retroactivity and the Common Law, page 12:
- Synonyms
- retroactiveness
- Derived terms
- nonretroactivity