--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Ignorance of the law excuses no man." description: "\"Ignorance of the law excuses no man.\" — John Selden" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4e/john-selden-7457_american-law_ignorance-of-the-law-excuses-no-man-2403_2403826.jpg" --- # Ignorance of the law excuses no man. ![“Ignorance of the law excuses no man.” quote by John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4e/john-selden-7457_american-law_ignorance-of-the-law-excuses-no-man-2403_2403826.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4e/john-selden-7457_american-law_ignorance-of-the-law-excuses-no-man-2403_2403826.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4e/john-selden-7457_american-law_ignorance-of-the-law-excuses-no-man-2403_2403826.jpg) > “Ignorance of the law excuses no man.” [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Ignorance does not excuse breaking the law; knowledge of legal obligations is required. **In simple terms:** Not knowing the law isn’t a defense. Key Takeaway Learn and obey the law. Themes law responsibility accountability Mood serious cautionary Type ethical legal When to use this quote - driving - business compliance - citizen behavior - contractual agreements Key Concepts legal ignorance civic duty Questions to Reflect On - How can societies make laws more understandable? - What are the limits of personal responsibility? A Different Perspective Complex laws may be inaccessible to laypeople. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-law/) [Excuses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/excuses/) [Ignorance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ignorance/) [Ignorance of the law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ignorance-of-the-law/) [Justice system](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice-system/) [Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law/) [Lawyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lawyer/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Practicing law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/practicing-law/) ## Related quotes > [Ignorance of the law excuses no man; not that all men know the law, but because 'tis an excuse every man will plead, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/ignorance-of-the-law-excuses-no-man-not-that-all-men-know-the-law-but/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [Ignorance of the law excuses no man; not that all men know the law, but because 'tis an excuse every man will plead, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/ignorance-of-the-law-excuses-no-man-not-that-all-men-know-the-law-but-2/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [Ignorance of the law excuses no man from practicing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/addison-mizner/ignorance-of-the-law-excuses-no-man-from-practicing-it/) [Addison Mizner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/addison-mizner/) > [Lawyers are the only persons in whom ignorance of the law is not punished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-bentham/lawyers-are-the-only-persons-in-whom-ignorance-of-the-law-is-not/) [Jeremy Bentham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-bentham/) > [But ignorance of the law is no excuse. A person is guilty even if he breaks the law unknowingly. I shall be perhaps the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walther-funk/but-ignorance-of-the-law-is-no-excuse-a-person-is-guilty-even-if-he/) Walther Funk > [Ignorance of the law is no good excuse, where every man is bound to take notice of the laws to which he is subject.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/ignorance-of-the-law-is-no-good-excuse-where-every-man-is-bound-to/) [Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/) > [The laws of nature are only as immutable as the minds which promote them. Ignorance of the law is 9/10ths of the law. Just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/the-laws-of-nature-are-only-as-immutable-as-the-minds-which-promote/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) > [Ignorance of the law is not a valid excuse for accused criminals, and it cannot be an excuse for members of Congress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-broun/ignorance-of-the-law-is-not-a-valid-excuse-for-accused-criminals-and/) [Paul Broun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-broun/) > [Ignorance of the law of irreducibility was no excuse. I could no longer excuse myself with the claim that I didn't know the law…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarice-lispector/ignorance-of-the-law-of-irreducibility-was-no-excuse-i-could-no/) [Clarice Lispector](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarice-lispector/) > [“No doubt you’ve heard the phrase 'ignorance of the law is no excuse’, and are probably familiar with the statist meaning of that phrase:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/starchild/no-doubt-you-ve-heard-the-phrase-ignorance-of-the-law-is-no-excuse/) Starchild > [Ignorance of the law must not prevent the losing attorney from collecting his fee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/legal-maxim/ignorance-of-the-law-must-not-prevent-the-losing-attorney-from/) [Legal Maxim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/legal-maxim/) > [Ignorance of the law is no excuse in any country. If it were, the laws would lose their effect, because it can always be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/ignorance-of-the-law-is-no-excuse-in-any-country-if-it-were-the-laws/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Lawyers spend their professional careers shoveling smoke.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/lawyers-spend-their-professional-careers-shoveling-smoke/) [Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/) > [Whoever tells the best story wins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-quincy-adams/whoever-tells-the-best-story-wins/) [John Quincy Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-quincy-adams/) > [I don't think you can make a lawyer honest by an act of legislature. You've got to work on his conscience. And his lack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-rogers/i-don-t-think-you-can-make-a-lawyer-honest-by-an-act-of-legislature/) [Will Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-rogers/) ## More by John Selden > [Marriage is a desperate thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/marriage-is-a-desperate-thing/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [They that govern the most make the least noise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/they-that-govern-the-most-make-the-least-noise/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [We look after religion as the butcher did after his knife, when he had it in his mouth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/we-look-after-religion-as-the-butcher-did-after-his-knife-when-he-had/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [Those that govern most make least noise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/those-that-govern-most-make-least-noise/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [Idolatry is in a man's own thought, not in the opinion of another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/idolatry-is-in-a-man-s-own-thought-not-in-the-opinion-of-another/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [No man is the wiser for his learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/no-man-is-the-wiser-for-his-learning/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [Wise people say nothing in dangerous times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/wise-people-say-nothing-in-dangerous-times/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [Old friends are best. King James used to call for his old shoes; they were the easiest for his feet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/old-friends-are-best-king-james-used-to-call-for-his-old-shoes-they/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [Pleasures are all alike simply considered in themselves: he that hunts, or he that governs the commonwealth, they both please themselves alike, only we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/pleasures-are-all-alike-simply-considered-in-themselves-he-that-hunts/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [We pick out a text here and there to make it serve our turn; whereas , if we take it all together, and considered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/we-pick-out-a-text-here-and-there-to-make-it-serve-our-turn-whereas/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [Talk what you will of the Jews,--that they are cursed: they thrive wherever they come; they are able to oblige the prince of their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/talk-what-you-will-of-the-jews-that-they-are-cursed-they-thrive/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [They that are against superstition oftentimes run into it of the wrong side. If I wear all colors but black, then I am superstitious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/they-that-are-against-superstition-oftentimes-run-into-it-of-the/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [The world cannot be governed without juggling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/the-world-cannot-be-governed-without-juggling/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [Preaching, in the first sense of the word, ceased as soon as ever the gospel was written.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/preaching-in-the-first-sense-of-the-word-ceased-as-soon-as-ever-the/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) > [Preachers say, "Do as I say, not as I do." But if a physician had the same disease upon him that I have, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/preachers-say-do-as-i-say-not-as-i-do-but-if-a-physician-had-the-same/) [John Selden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) [Explore all 91 John Selden quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/) ## More American law quotes > [It will be of little avail to the people, that the laws are made by men of their own choice, if the laws be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/it-will-be-of-little-avail-to-the-people-that-the-laws-are-made-by/) [Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/) > [“Start with the observation that American law is not designed to catch and punish every instance of illegal conduct. Nothing short of a totalitarian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carpenter/start-with-the-observation-that-american-law-is-not-designed-to-catch/) [Dale Carpenter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carpenter/) > [American law needs to reflect gods law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-klingenschmitt/american-law-needs-to-reflect-gods-law/) [Gordon Klingenschmitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-klingenschmitt/) > [Some may remember, if you have good memories, that there used to be a concept in Anglo-American law called a presumption of innocence, innocent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/some-may-remember-if-you-have-good-memories-that-there-used-to-be-a/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [American laws don't work, but at least the laws of physics might work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/american-laws-don-t-work-but-at-least-the-laws-of-physics-might-work/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [I think the archaic idea is actually winner take all, because the principle of "one person, one vote" is a principle that was introduced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/i-think-the-archaic-idea-is-actually-winner-take-all-because-the/) [Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/) > [“Indeed, they embraced a tradition that was notorious for its incompatibility with American law and liberty. The connection between absolute and administrative power was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-hamburger/indeed-they-embraced-a-tradition-that-was-notorious-for-its/) [Philip Hamburger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-hamburger/) > [All students, members of the faculty, and public officials in both Mississippi and the Nation will be able, it is hoped, to return to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/all-students-members-of-the-faculty-and-public-officials-in-both/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [It is the fundamental theory of all the more recent American law...that the average citizen is half-witted, and hence not to be trusted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/it-is-the-fundamental-theory-of-all-the-more-recent-american-law-that/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [Law is a process. If there is equality of process for everybody, then that's our definition of justice. Whether or not what is done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-george/law-is-a-process-if-there-is-equality-of-process-for-everybody-then/) [Francis George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-george/) > [It's important to every American that the law protect his or her basic liberty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-breyer/it-s-important-to-every-american-that-the-law-protect-his-or-her/) [Stephen Breyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-breyer/) > [Expedience, not justice, is the rule of contemporary American law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abbie-hoffman/expedience-not-justice-is-the-rule-of-contemporary-american-law/) [Abbie Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abbie-hoffman/) > [Besides the advantage of being armed, which the Americans possess over the people of almost every other nation… Notwithstanding the military establishments in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-madison/besides-the-advantage-of-being-armed-which-the-americans-possess-over/) [James Madison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-madison/) > [Before a standing army can rule, the people must be disarmed; as they are in almost every kingdom of Europe. The supreme power in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-webster/before-a-standing-army-can-rule-the-people-must-be-disarmed-as-they/) [Noah Webster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-webster/) > [Educating Lawyers succeeds admirably in describing the educational programs at virtually every American law school. The call for the integration of the three apprenticeships…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-wizner/educating-lawyers-succeeds-admirably-in-describing-the-educational/) Stephen Wizner [Browse all 25 American law quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-law/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Ignorance of the law excuses no man.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Selden" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/ignorance-of-the-law-excuses-no-man/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "American law" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/ignorance-of-the-law-excuses-no-man/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4e/john-selden-7457_american-law_ignorance-of-the-law-excuses-no-man-2403_2403826.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4e/john-selden-7457_american-law_ignorance-of-the-law-excuses-no-man-2403_2403826.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b4e/john-selden-7457_american-law_ignorance-of-the-law-excuses-no-man-2403_2403826.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Ignorance of the law excuses no man.” — John Selden", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "John Selden", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-selden/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Ignorance of the law excuses no...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/ignorance-of-the-law-excuses-no-man/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-selden/ignorance-of-the-law-excuses-no-man/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```