Defence - Law Dictionary Search Results
Home Dictionary Name: defence Page: 5Homicide
Homicide, destroying the life of a human being. In its several stages of guilt, arising from the parti-cular circumstances of mitigation or aggravation which attends it, it is either justifiable, excusable, or felonious.I. Justifiable, of three kinds:(a) Where the proper officer executes a criminal in strict conformity with his sentence.(b) Where an officer of justice, or other person acting in his aid, in the legal exercise of a particular duty, kills a person who resists or prevents him from executing it.(g) Where it is committed in prevention of a forcible and atrocious crime, 1 Hale, 488.II. Excusable, of two kinds:-(a) Per infortunium, or by misadventure, as where a man doing a lawful act, without any intention of hurt, by accident kills another; but if death ensue from any unlawful act, the offence is manslaughter, and not misadventure.(b) Se defendendo, as where a man kills another upon a sudden encounter in his own defence, or in the defence of his wife, child, parent, or serva...
Macnaughton's Case, Rules in
Macnaughton's Case, Rules in [4 St. Tr. (N.S.) 847]. A discussion took place in the House of Lords upon the direction to the jury by Tindal, C.J., in the trial of Macnaughton, and as a result a series of questions were put to the judges. The answers of the majority constitute 'the rules in Macnaughton's case,' and have been accepted as laying down the law as to insanity with reference to criminal responsibility. See Archbold, Crim. Pleading, etc., 25th Edn., p. 15 et seq. The rules have been the subject of much discussion and criticism by political, medical, and legal writers (see, for example, Lord Birkenhead's letter to The Times, May 26th, 1924). The main rule which is laid down is, that in order to establish a defence on the ground of insanity, it must be proved that, at the time of the committing of the act, the person accused was labouring under such a defect of reason, from disease of the mind, as not to know the nature and quality of the act he was doing, or, if he did know it,...
Duress
Duress [fr. duresse, Fr.; durities, Lat., constraint], imprisonment, compulsion.Duress is either by imprisonment or by threats. In order to constitute duress by imprisonment, either the imprisonment or the duress consequent upon it must be tortious and unlawful.By the Common Law, a contract made during duress is not void, but voidable; and the person upon whom it is practised may avail himself of the duress as a special defence to an action thereupon at any time. But the person who has employed the force cannot allege it as a defence, if the contract be insisted upon by the other.Where a person is not a free agent, and is not able to protect himself, the Court will protect him, and will set aside a contract made under duress. Circumstances also of extreme necessity and distress of the party, although not accompanied by the direct restraint or duress, may, in like manner, so entirely overcome his free agency as to justify the Court in setting aside a contract made by him on account of s...
Battery
Battery [batterie, Fr., fr battre, to beat], beating and wounding. This, in law, includes every touching or laying hold, however trifling, of another's person or clothes, in an angry, revengeful, rude, insolent, or hostile manner. It is a good defence to prove that the alleged battery happened by misadventure, or that it was merely an amicable contest, or that it was the correcting of a child by its parent, or the punishment of a criminal by the proper officer, or that the prosecutor assaulted or beat the defendant first, and that the defendant committed the alleged battery merely in his own defence as to the criminal proceedings for battery, see (English) Offences against the Person Act, 1861 (24 & 25 Vict. c. 100), ss. 42, 43. See ASSAULT.Battery, includes even the slightest force, no actual harm need result, it is actionable per se, Kenlin v. Gardiner, (1967) 2 QB 510; Fagan v. Metropolitan Police Commissioner, (1969) 1 QB 439; Freeman v. Home Office, (1984) QB 524.Means a crime and...
Default summons
Default summons, a procedure in the county courts for the summary recovery of a debt or liquidated demand. These summonses are of two kinds: (i.) Ordinary Default Summonses; and (ii.) Special Default Summonses. (i.) an Ordinary Default Summons is only applicable to liquidated demands between 2l. and 10l., and is not available against a working-class defendant, except in the case of a trade debt, where the claim exceeds 5l. The plaintiff can sign judgment after eight days from service if the defendant has failed to give notice of defence stating the facts upon which he relies. (ii.) A Special Default Summons is only applicable to liquidated demands over 10l., and cannot be issued against a working-class defendant, except for a trade debt incurred by him. The plaintiff can sign judgment as in (i.) unless the defendant has filed an affidavit of defence within eight days. A special default summons corresponds to the Order XIV. Procedure of the High Court.See (English) County Court Rules, 1...
Abduction
Abduction: (1) The forcible or fradulent taking away of a woman. It is felony:-(a) Where any person from motives of lucre takes away or detains any woman who has any interest in any property (even a presumptive expectation) with intent to marry or carnally know her or to cause her to be married or carnally known. (b) Where any person fradulently allures, takes away or detains with like intent such a woman under 21 out of the possession and against the will of her parent or other person having the lawful care of her. In either of these two cases a person convicted is incapable of taking any estate or interest in the woman's property, (English) Offences against the Person Act, 1861. (c) Where any person by force takes away or detains any woman being of age with like intent (Ib. s. 54). It is a misdemeanour:-(a) Where any person takes away an unmarried girl under 16 out of the possession and against the will of her parent or other person having lawful charge of her (Ib. s. 55). A bona fid...
Abusing children
Abusing children, having carnal intercourse with young girls. If the girl be under the age of 13 (formerly 10 and afterwards 12) years, the offences is a felony punishable with penal servitude for life; if the girl be above the age of 13 (formerly 10 and afterwards 12) and under 16 (formerly 12 and afterwards 13), the offence is a misdemeanour punishable by imprisonment, with or without hard labour, to the extent of two years, (English) Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1885 (48 & 49 Vict. C. 69), repealing the (English) Offences against the Person Act, 1875, repealing 24 & 25 Vict. C. 100, ss. 50, 51, which fixed lesser ages as above. The (English) Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1922 (12 & 13 Geo. 5, c. 56), amends the Act of 1885, so that in the case of the second of the above-mentioned offences, it shall be a sufficient defence if it shall be made to appear to the Court or jury that the person charged had reasonable cause to believe that the girl was of, or above the age of 16, but only if h...
Answerin Chancery
Answerin Chancery. The statement of the defendant's case, in answer to the plaintiff's bill of complaint. It was sworn to by the defendant.'Statement of Defence' is now substituted for the 'Answer.'-See STATEMENT OF DEFENCE and R. S. C. Ord. XIX....
Armour and arms
Armour and arms are understood in Law to mean things (see preceding title) which a person wears for defence, or takes in hand, or uses in anger, to strike or cast at another. Arms are also insignia, i.e., ensigns of honour, originally badges assumed by commanders in war and painted on their shields to distinguish them, since they could not be distinguished by the ancient coat of mail which covered the whole body. King Richard I., during his crusade, first made arms hereditary. Every subject in this realm has a right to carry arms for defence suitable to his condition and degree, and allowed by law, and this right is embodied in the Bill of Rights, 1 W. & M. c. 2, s. 2. The Statute of Northampton, 2 Edw. 3, c. 3, prohibits persons going armed under circumstances which may tend to terrify the people or indicate any intention of disturbing the public peace, see R. v. Meade, (1903) 19 TLR 540. The (English) Unlawful Drilling Act, 1819 (60 Geo. 3, c. 1), prohibits the training of persons wi...
Bar, plea in
Bar, plea in, a pleading showing some ground for barring or defeating an action at Common Law. A plea in bar was therefore distinguished from all pleas of the dilatory class, as impugning the right of action altogether, instead of merely tending to divert the proceedings to another jurisdiction, or suspend them, or abate the particular writ or declaration. It was, in short, a substantial and conclusive answer to the action. It followed from this property, that, in general, it must either deny all, or some essential part of, the averments of fact in the declaration, or, admitting them to be true, allege new facts which obviated or repelled their legal effect. In the first case the defendant was said, in the language of pleading, to traverse the matter of the declaration; in the latter, to confess and avoid it. Pleas in bar were consequently divided into (1) pleas by way of traverse, and (2) pleas by confession and avoidance.In Equity, a plea in bar was a defence resorted to when there w...
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