The phrase "legitimate sanction" is correct and can be used in written English.
It refers to a legal or rightful punishment or consequence for breaking a rule or law. Example: The government imposed legitimate sanctions on the company that violated environmental regulations.
The attackers must have legitimate authority sanctioned by the society they profess to represent.
Nor should they strain the legitimate authority of the next president, whose win has been sanctioned by the United States Supreme Court and the Electoral College.
These behaviors are legitimate, efficient and sanctioned in all societies – as long as the parties understand the rules in play.
He said that the only way to stop the "bad" spamming -- the scams, the deceptive links, the anonymous porn mailings -- is to sanction a legitimate form of commercial spam with established standards.
Had these illuminating tapes not already found their way onto the collectors' market, their seizure would be unfortunate, because it is unlikely that Apple, the Beatles' company, will ever sanction their legitimate release.
It is only when we can show direct harm to rights, which will almost always mean when an attack is made against a specific individual or a small group of persons, that it is legitimate to impose a sanction.
There is a desire to see the imposition of criminal sanctions: a legitimate desire.
The Constitution removes certain subjects from the scope of legitimate public policy, officially sanctioned race discrimination being among them.
In his opinion for the Supreme Court, Justice Anthony Kennedy said "none of the legitimate goals of penal sanctions — retribution, deterrence, incapacitation and rehabilitation — is served to justify life without parole for juvenile nonhomicide offenders".
By establishing a private, civil right of action, the law tries to provide "an officially sanctioned and legitimate cause of action for seeking redress for injuries resulting from gender-motivated violence," regardless of sex or sexual orientation, the text says.
