>the term color of law
lot's of replies, none of them clear and concise. imagine a legislative body puts words on paper, then goes thru the motions of voting and ratifying those words as law, except that the law is unconstitutional, because in a precedent dating back to the beginnings of the supreme court, a landmark ruling stated that an unconstitutional law becomes unconstitutional the moment that it is enacted, NOT when a court so rules. therefore, it looks like a law (the color of law), but it is NOT a law, and in point of fact, it is every citizens patriotic duty to DEFY that "fake" law.