Definition.com
De-jure sovereignty is when one who has a legal claim to sovereignty does not possess it (in contrast to de-facto sovereignty which is when one who has no legal claim to sovereignty does possess it (by the exercise of force).
De-jure sovereignty is when one who has a legal claim to sovereignty does not possess it (in contrast to de-facto sovereignty which is when one who has no legal claim to sovereignty does possess it (by the exercise of force).