involuntary conduct Conduct that cannot be controlled because one is suffering
from a physical or mental condition or is acting under *duress. Involuntary conduct
will often give rise to a defence of automatism, although it may not be a defence if
one is aware of one’s condition or induced it oneself. Sometimes conduct may be
regarded as involuntary if [...]
automatism n. Unconscious *involuntary conduct caused by some external factor.
A person is not criminally liable for acts carried out in a state of automatism, since
his conduct is altogether involuntary. Examples of such acts are those carried out
while sleepwalking or in a state of concussion or hypnotic trance, a spasm or reflex
action, and acts carried out [...]
absence n. (in court procedure) The nonappearance of a party to litigation or a
person summoned to attend as a witness.
abortion n. The termination of a pregnancy: a miscarriage or the premature
expulsion of a foetus from the womb before the normal period of gestation is
complete. It is an offence to induce or attempt to induce an abortion unless the
terms of the Abortion Act 1967 and the Abortion Regulations 1991 are complied with.
The pregnancy can only [...]
1. The act of giving up a legal right, particularly a right of ownership of property. Property that has been abandoned is res nullius(a thing belonging to no one), and a person taking possession of it therefore acquires a lawful title. An item is regarded as abandoned when it can be established that the original owner [...]