Null and void
Suggest a CorrectionMeaning
Having no legal force, binding effect or validity, and therefore incapable of being enforced. Common in contracts and judgments, but also used generally for something cancelled or ineffective. In a particular legal system, null and void may have technical consequences that depend on statute and context. Regional use: English legal drafting; now international in legal and general English.
Origin
Null and void is a legal doublet assembled from near-synonyms that reached English through different learned traditions. Null reflects Latin nullus, while void came through French; pairing such terms helped legal language remain intelligible across a multilingual profession and later became a conventional reinforcement. Merriam-Webster gives 1653 as the first known use of the fixed phrase. That is evidence for the established English formula, not the birth date of either much older component or proof that a named drafter coined it.
Research Sources
Variants
- Null, void and of no effect
Usage Examples
- The court held that the unsigned amendment was null and void.
- Any ticket obtained through an automated bulk purchase will be declared null and void.
- Without approval from both trustees, the transfer remains null and void.