void–for–vagueness doctrine

void–for–vagueness doctrine
void–for–vagueness doctrine n: a doctrine requiring that a penal statute define a criminal offense with sufficient definiteness that ordinary people can understand what conduct is prohibited and in a manner that does not encourage arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement
◇ Under the void-for-vagueness doctrine, a vague law is a violation of due process because the law does not provide fair warning of a prohibition and fails to set standards for enforcement that would govern the exercise of the police power.

Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Law. . 1996.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • void for vagueness doctrine — A doctrine derived from the Due Process Clauses of the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution that requires criminal laws to be drafted in language that is clear enough for the average person to comprehend. Dictionary from West… …   Law dictionary

  • vagueness doctrine — n: void for vagueness doctrine Merriam Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam Webster. 1996 …   Law dictionary

  • vagueness doctrine — Under this principle, a law (e.g., criminal statute) which does not fairly inform a person of what is commanded or prohibited is unconstitutional as violative of due process. The doctrine originates in due process clause of Fourteenth Amendment,… …   Black's law dictionary

  • void — Null; ineffectual; nugatory; having no legal force or binding effect; unable, in law, to support the purpose for which it was intended. Hardison v. Gledhill, 72 Ga.App. 432, 33 S.E.2d 921, 924. An instrument or transaction which is wholly… …   Black's law dictionary

  • Vagueness — Ambiguity is one way in which the meanings of words and phrases can be unclear, but there is another way, which is different from ambiguity: vagueness. One example of a vague concept is the concept of a heap. Two or three grains of sand is not a… …   Wikipedia

  • vague — / vāg/ adj: characterized by such a lack of precision that a person of ordinary intelligence would have to guess if particular conduct is being proscribed: characterized by a failure to describe forbidden conduct in terms sufficient to provide… …   Law dictionary

  • University of Pennsylvania Law Review — Infobox Journal title = University of Pennsylvania Law Review editor = discipline = Law review language = English abbreviation = U. Pa. L. Rev. publisher = University of Pennsylvania Law School country = United States frequency = Monthly history …   Wikipedia

  • fair warning — n: sufficient notification in a statute that particular conduct constitutes a crime see also void for vagueness doctrine Merriam Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam Webster. 1996. fair warning …   Law dictionary

  • South African contract law — is essentially a modernised version of the Roman Dutch law of contract, [1] which is itself rooted in Roman law. In the broadest definition, a contract is an agreement entered into by two or more parties with the serious intention of creating a… …   Wikipedia

  • List of law topics (S-Z) — NOTOC Law [From Old English lagu something laid down or fixed ; legal comes from Latin legalis , from lex law , statute ( [http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=law searchmode=none Law] , Online Etymology Dictionary; [http://www.m… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”