Late 16th century. Either from pre- + contest after post-classical Latin precontestis, or independently from post-classical Latin precontestis previous fellow witness.
Definition of precontest in US English:
precontest
nounpriːˈkɒntɛst
historical
A former or previous fellow witness.
Origin
Late 16th century. Either from pre- + contest after post-classical Latin precontestis, or independently from post-classical Latin precontestis previous fellow witness.