Affirmative Defense - Law Dictionary Search Results
Home Dictionary Name: affirmative defenseaffirmative defense
affirmative defense see defense ...
defense
defense 1 : the act or action of defending see also self-defense 2 a : the theory or ground that forms the basis for a defendant's opposition to an allegation in a complaint or to a charge in a charging instrument (as an indictment) ;also : the evidence and arguments presented supporting the defendant's opposition see also accord, alibi, assumption of risk, coercion, consent contributory negligence at negligence, denial, diminished capacity, duress, entrapment, estoppel, fraud, infancy, insanity, intoxication, laches, mistake, necessity, res judicata, statute of limitations absolute defense : complete defense in this entry af·fir·ma·tive defense : a defense that does not deny the truth of the allegations against the defendant but gives some other reason (as insanity, assumption of risk, or expiration of the statute of limitations) why the defendant cannot be held liable NOTE: The defendant bears the burden of proof as to affirmative defenses. choice of evils d...
self-defense
self-defense 1 : the use of force to defend oneself 2 : an affirmative defense (as to a murder charge) alleging that the defendant used force necessarily to protect himself or herself because of a reasonable belief that the other party intended to inflict great bodily harm or death see also justification ...
impossibility
impossibility pl: -ties 1 : the quality or state of being impossible ;also : the affirmative defense that something (as performance) is impossible 2 : something impossible 3 : impossibility of performance in this entry fac·tu·al impossibility : impossibility based on factual circumstances ;specif : a partial defense to criminal liability based on the incompletion of an intended criminal act NOTE: Factual impossibility is not a complete defense and does allow prosecution for attempt or for another inchoate offense. For example, if the defendant constructed a bomb that failed to explode, factual impossibility would be a defense against murder charges, but not attempted murder. impossibility of per·for·mance 1 : a doctrine in contract law that a party may be released from liability for breach of contract for failing to perform an obligation that is rendered impossible by uncontrollable circumstances (as death or failure of the means of delivery) 2 : a defe...
denial
denial 1 : refusal to grant or allow something [ of due process] [ of a motion] 2 a : an assertion that an allegation is false b : a defense asserting that an opposing party's allegations are false compare affirmative defense at defense, traverse NOTE: Under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, allegations that are not denied are taken as admitted, and a statement that a party has insufficient knowledge or information to form a belief as to the truth of an allegation is taken as a denial. A denial must sufficiently state which allegations or parts of allegations are being denied. ar·gu·men·ta·tive denial [Ä r-gyə-men-tə-tiv-] : a denial that asserts facts inconsistent with an allegation made by an adverse party general denial 1 : a denial of all the allegations in a complaint 2 : a denial of all the allegations of a particular paragraph or group of paragraphs in a complaint specific denial 1 : general denial in this entry 2 : a denial of...
entrapment
entrapment 1 : the action or process of entrapping [ is un-American and has no place in law enforcement "Tip O'Neill"] 2 : the state or condition of being entrapped ;also : the affirmative defense of having been entrapped by a government agent (as an officer or informant) see also predispose NOTE: Entrapment is available as a defense only when an agent of the state or federal government has provided the encouragement or inducement. This defense is sometimes allowed in administrative proceedings (as for the revocation of a license to practice medicine) as well as criminal proceedings. In order to establish entrapment, the defendant has the burden of proving either that he or she would not have committed the crime but for the undue persuasion or fraud of the government agent, or that the encouragement was such that it created a risk that persons not inclined to commit the crime would commit it, depending on the jurisdiction. When entrapment is pleaded, evidence (as character eviden...
necessity
necessity pl: -ties 1 a : the presence or pressure of circumstances that justify or compel a certain course of action ;esp : a need to respond or react to a dangerous situation by committing a criminal act b : an affirmative defense originating in common law that the defendant had to commit a criminal act because of the pressure of a situation that threatened a harm greater than that resulting from the act see also choice of evils defense at defense compare duress, undue influence 2 : something that is necessary esp. to subsistence [obligated to provide the necessities of food, clothing, and shelter] ...
counterclaim
counterclaim : a claim for relief that is asserted against an opposing party after an original claim has been made compare affirmative defense at defense, cross-action, cross-appeal, cross-claim, interpleader, third-party claim counterclaim vb ...
justification
justification 1 : the act or an instance of justifying 2 : something that justifies ;specif : a legally sufficient reason or cause (as self-defense) for an act that would otherwise be criminal or tortious 3 : the affirmative defense of having a legally sufficient justification compare excuse ...
laches
laches pl: laches [Anglo-French lachesce laschesce negligence, from Old French lasche lax, ultimately from Latin laxare to loosen, from laxus slack] 1 : undue delay in asserting a right or privilege compare statute of limitations 2 a : a doctrine permitting dismissal of a suit because a plaintiff's unreasonable delay in asserting a right or privilege has been detrimental to the defendant's ability to make a defense (as by resulting in the unavailability of witnesses or evidence) [a suit barred by ] b : an affirmative defense based on this doctrine ...
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