800-pound gorilla


"800-pound gorilla" is an American English expression for a person or organization so powerful that it can act without regard to the rights of others or the law.
The phrase is rooted in a riddle joke:
This highlights the disparity of power between the 800-pound gorilla and everything else.
The term can describe a powerful geopolitical and military force, or, in business, a powerful corporate entity that has such a large majority percentage of whatever market they compete within that they can use that strength to crush would-be competitors.
In law, the phrase occurs semi-formally as a characterization of judges vs. courts; as in: "Standard/Court Rule" vs "Gorilla/Judge Rule".
The metaphor has been mixed, on occasion, with the metaphor of the elephant in the room.