legal-terms
The inner law &quot;overrules&quot; law of a country
<p>I would like to know if there is a term for the following situation/fact:</p>

<p>For a certain situation, for a certain country there is a law, and because I live in this country I have to adhere to it.</p>

<p>But sometimes there is a higher law, the inner law in someones heart / understanding, to act according to this, which is opposite to the law of the country. </p>

<p>So there is some kind of "overruling" by the "inner" law. </p>

<p>For example: My country is in war with another one (only an example). I'm in the army. The military law says that I have to fight. But my inner law says "no" to it.</p>

<p>In jurisprudence there are lots of terms for such situations. Is there a term for this? Maybe something like "priority of conscience", maybe a latin expression?</p>

<p>Thanks a lot in advance</p>

<p>In the case of military conscription, someone who does not serve due to a moral opposition to war in general (and not just a particular war) is called a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conscientious_objector" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><em>conscientious objector</a></em> and in most countries, is usually allowed to perform alternative mandatory government service in lieu of military service if conscripted.</p>

<p>In the case of other laws, where someone intentionally doesn't follow the law for moral reasons, the person is said to be engaging in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_disobedience" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><em>civil disobedience</em></a> which is not a legal defense and does not relieve the person from any punishment or consequences for their actions (except in cases where the failure to follow a laws is due to a legally protected right to free exercise of one's religion).</p>

<p>No pithy latin legal terms for this come readily to mind, although I'm sure that some obscure ones that have largely fallen out of common usage exist.</p>
