De facto

De facto (/deɪ ˈfæktoʊ, di -, də -/ day FAK-toh, dee -⁠, də -⁠, Latin: [deː ˈfaktoː]; lit. 'in fact') describes practices that exist in reality, regardless of whether they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with de jure ("by law"), which refers to things that happen according to official law, regardless of whether the practice exists in reality.