Court oil

Some of the most widely recorded hoodoo practices concern a single room: the courtroom, and how to walk into it with the odds on your side.

Origin & Traditional Use

Court case work is a well-established branch of hoodoo, built for anyone facing a judge, a hearing or a legal dispute. Court oil is one of the named formula oils made for that branch, used to dress candles, papers and the person before a case. Its aim is a fair or favourable ruling and a calm, persuasive presence.

Uses by Tradition

Hoodoo & Rootwork

• Dress a brown or purple candle and burn it daily in the days leading up to a hearing.
• Write the names of the judge and the case on paper, anoint it, and carry it in a pocket or shoe into court.
• Touch a drop to the wrists and the back of the neck on the morning of the hearing.

Witchcraft & Folk Magick

• Anoint a small bundle of bay leaves and keep it with your legal documents.
• Dress a candle on a Thursday, the day of Jupiter and law, for a working of fairness and authority.

Ceremonial & Occult Magick

• Dress a talisman of Jupiter, the planet of judges and lawgivers, before consecrating it.

A Simple Working

• On a Thursday, write the case name and the judge’s name on a square of parchment.
• Under the names, write the outcome you are asking for in a single sentence.
• Anoint each corner of the paper with Court oil.
• Dress a brown or purple candle with the oil and stand it on the folded paper.
• Light it and state your case aloud as if speaking to the judge.
• Repeat with a fresh candle each day until the hearing.
• On the day, carry the paper with you into court.

Pairs Well With

• Galangal root, known in hoodoo as Court Case root or Little John to Chew.
• Brown candles, the traditional colour for justice and legal matters.
• Bay leaves, for victory and for writing names and wishes upon.
• Calendula, an old herb of court work kept in the pocket for favour.

Lore & History

The habit of chewing a piece of galangal root in court and discreetly spitting the juice on the floor before the judge enters is one of the best recorded court customs in Southern conjure. In the early twentieth century, spiritual-supply houses in cities such as Chicago, Memphis and New Orleans sold named condition oils by mail order, each label promising help with one specific need. Court Case oils, powders and candles were standard stock among them.

What You Receive

Court oil, available in 2 dram, 1 oz and 16 oz bottles.