Supplementary law is used to resolve a situation that is not regulated.
Supletorio is an adjective that comes from the modern Latin suppletorius , in turn linked to the late Latin suppletorium which translates as “supplement” . The supplementary, according to the first meaning of the term included in the dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy ( RAE ), refers to that which is used to replace something that is missing .
Some examples
Since it is not a very common term in everyday speech, below we will see three example sentences in which we can appreciate it in context to better understand the nuances of its meaning: “If you do not have your ID on hand, you can present another supplementary document to prove your identity” , “The aircraft has a supplementary engine in case the main one fails” , “The organizers of the event are looking for an extra venue due to the problems that were detected in the stadium” .
In the first example, the issuer tells his interlocutor that he can use a document other than the national identity document to pass a certain checkpoint. In this case, use the supplementary adjective since the alternative is as valid as the original option, although not in this specific case. The second sentence states that an aircraft has two engines , one of which qualifies as a backup , precisely because it has the properties necessary to replace the main one in the event of a malfunction.
We come to the last example, in which we talk about a group of people who are in the process of organizing an event , for which they need to find a suitable place, since the one they had chosen in the first place has certain inconveniences that prevents them from carrying out the celebration.
Supplementary right
In the legal field, the right that is appealed to in the absence of the primarily applicable right is called supplementary right . A default rule , in this framework, applies instead of another. It can provide different benefits, such as not regulating the same subject more than once, as well as achieving broader unity in the legal system.
The supplementary right is given by the regulations that may govern in contexts that are not their own. This situation occurs when a specific area of the legal system does not regulate a situation as it should have.
It is often said that supplementary law makes it possible to cover a legal limbo or legal loophole . When something is not regulated by a specific law , supplementary law is used. This is done before relying on general principles or custom , among other sources.
When we talk about general principles we are referring to the rules that have not been formally included in legal systems but that are respected because they are part of an abstract, implicit layer. Two common examples are the principle of equality and that of hierarchy . With respect to customs , in the field of law it is the uniform and uninterrupted way in which a community acts, which is considered necessary and obligatory from a legal point of view.
If a student excuses his absence from a given exam, he may take a substitute exam.
Supplementary exam
In the field of education , meanwhile, the idea of a supplementary exam is used. This is the name given to the evaluation that is taken individually for a student when, for a justified reason, he or she was unable to attend the exam on the original date.
Note that, as stated in the previous paragraph, the student must present a document that formally justifies the reason why he/she could not appear on the first date of the exam. In some cases, the supplementary exam is an extra (supplementary) test that allows the student to add points or improve their grade.