"had precedence over" is a correct and usable phrase in written English.
It means something or someone was given priority or considered more important than something or someone else. Example: In the company hierarchy, the CEO's opinions always had precedence over those of the lower-level employees.
They relaxed their traditional principles and practice because the establishment of the Party seemed a necessity that had precedence over all others.
The new royal infant will be third in line to the throne whether it is a boy or a girl, thanks to a recent legal change, ending hundreds of years during which male heirs had precedence over elder sisters, sometimes with notable historical consequences.
This was unpopular among Party apparatchiks, and led to confusions in the chain of command, as neither committee secretary had precedence over the other.
The rule book stated that locomotive-hauled trains had precedence over horse-drawn trains, but some horse drivers refused to give way and on one occasion a locomotive had to follow a horse-drawn train for over 2 mile.
Refusing to re-film the scenes on the basis that Parrish's instructions had precedence over Anderson's, Read resigned from both Century 21 and the production of Doppelgänger at the Andersons' and Hill's request.
The consent of the children had precedence over parental consent.
Pope Francis, for example, was a cardinal-priest.Even though cardinals have precedence over other Catholic prelates, what they hold is more of a title than a rank.
Primate, in Christianity, an ecclesiastical title for a bishop in some churches who has precedence over a number of other bishops.
They happen when he is waiting for the school bus, or in the shower (conversation still has precedence over privacy) or most recently, over breakfast.
The plaintiffs are not arguing whether an older daughter should have precedence over her younger brother in the line of succession.
