Argumentum ad verecundiam

From RationalWiki

Argumentum ad verecundiam when correctly applied can be a valid appeal to authority but is often a logical fallacy consisting of an appeal to authority, but on a topic outside of the authority's expertise or on a topic on which the authority is not disinterested (ie is biased). Almost any subject has an authority on every side of the argument, even where there is generally agreed to be no argument.

An example of misuse would be appealing to Albert Einstein, a noted authority on physics, to support one's political beliefs.

A better phrase would be "Argument to misleading authority.

This fallacy is often used by creationists who appeal to authorities with PhDs in fields outside of biology or geology.

[edit] Footnotes

• See here for a detailed explanation

S T U B (The Pet Goat ate it)