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actus

actus

1 9.9
An action that the law considers when deciding if someone is guilty
  • noun
  • /ˈæktəs/
  • Formal
translation icon : acto
  • The primary distinction between murder and, say, involuntary manslaughter is not in the actus reus (the commission of an act that was the legal cause of the death of another) but in the mens rea (murder requires intent to kill, manslaughter requires recklessness).
  • actus reus

Examples

  • The court found that the defendant had fulfilled the actus required to prove guilt in his case.

  • The concept of actus is critical in distinguishing between different types of unlawful actions.

  • The bottom line, he's dead to rights in terms of the the actus Reyes and the Mens Rea of this.

  • The bottom line, he's dead to rights in terms of the the actus Reyes and the Mens reya of this Oh, I found it.

  • "A failure to act can constitute the actus reus for accomplice liability if the defendant has the legal duty to intervene, but fails to do so."

    Fiction book (2001)

  • The first element, actus reus, which was satisfied on October 10, 1983... ...when you, Robert and Douglas McKenzie, did kidnap one Pamela Elsinore.

    Strange Brew (1983)

  • That's why mens rea is a requirement for convicting a criminal in a court of law; actus reus is insufficient: we want to keep bad people away from us.

    Blog text (13)

  • In criminal law, establishing the actus is essential to demonstrate that a crime occurred.

Synonyms

act
vsactus
∞ 1.0

Something a person does, for example a kind or brave deed

is the Latin formal term used mainly in legal or philosophical contexts
factum
vsactus
  • Jargon
9.9

An action thought about in law and philosophy

is the Latin term for that idea used in legal and philosophical contexts

Compounds

actus reus
  • Formal
9.9

An illegal physical action someone does rather than their thoughts

Surface Forms

actus singular
actūs plural
actūs singular

Etymology

Actus comes from a Latin word meaning 'act' or 'action', and it is the same root as the English words act and action. So in law, actus points to the real, physical deed someone does—the 'guilty act' that must be shown.