Defendant
group · 3 works · 4 mentions · 11 anchored passages
also in the atlas: Defendant the figure
defendant · accused · debtor · respondent · the accused · the defendant
in the texts
Kātyāyana Smṛti
The party against whom a legal claim is brought, entitled to reply, time for preparation, and (except in serious crimes) representation.
## Whether the Reply is to be Given Immediately or After Some Time
The authority belongs to the accused, not to another, as there is no connection.
Admission, denial, a special plea, and a plea of former judgment—thus, the reply is of four kinds.
The Law of Torts
The party defending an action for defamation, who may plead defences such as justification, fair comment, or privilege.
Defamation is not actionable if the defendant shows that the defamatory matter was true;
What the defendant has to prove is truth in substance, that is, he must show that the imputation made or repeated by him was true as a whole and in every material part thereof.
Apparently it would make no difference in law that the defendant had made a defamatory statement without any belief in its truth, if it turned out afterwards to have been true when made:
Nāradasmṛti
The party against whom a suit is brought, who must respond with a denial, admission, special plea, or plea of former judgment.
A denial, an admission, a special plea, or a plea of former judgment—the reply may be of four kinds.
If the accused denies the accusation, the accuser must provide proof, unless the accused has made a special plea.
"This is false," "I do not know of it," "I was not present there at that time," "I was not yet born at that time"—thus, a denial is of four kinds.