Also known as: forcibly · by main force
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An adverb denoting action accomplished by force. The term historically described compulsion achieved through military or physical power rather than consent or legal process.
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Samuel directed associates to sedate Heather in her State A hotel room without her knowledge. They loaded her unconscious body into a van and drove her across the international border into State B. The covert sedation and transport satisfied the forcible element required for common-law kidnapping.
Bernice seized a metal gaff hook and thrust it toward Miguel's midsection while threatening to throw him overboard. She later jabbed the hook into his thigh, tearing the flesh. The deliberate use of physical compulsion satisfied the element of action accomplished efforcialiter.
The President issued an order directing the Secretary of Commerce to take possession of steel mills whose workers were on strike. Federal agents entered the facilities and assumed operational control against the owners' will. The seizure was effected efforcialiter without the owners' consent.
Washington enacted a statute setting minimum wages for women and minors employed in hotels and restaurants. The hotel company refused to pay the mandated rate and challenged the law as an unconstitutional interference with liberty of contract. The statute imposed its requirements efforcialiter through state authority.
A college received surplus federal land through a congressional conveyance. A taxpayer organization sued to enjoin the transfer, claiming it violated the Establishment Clause. The conveyance transferred title efforcialiter by operation of federal statute.
City officials refused to issue permits allowing labor organizers to hold meetings in public streets and parks. The organizations sued, alleging the denial infringed protected speech and assembly rights. The denial operated efforcialiter to bar the gatherings.
The historical definition centers on force, with primary reference to military compulsion, yet the core meaning extends to any physical compulsion that overcomes consent.
The common-law definition of kidnapping required forcible abduction and transportation across a border. The adverb captures the element of force that must be shown.
Modern codes have replaced the Latin adverb with English equivalents such as 'forcibly' or 'by force,' but the underlying concept remains central to kidnapping and false-imprisonment analysis.
…hardest nor easiest of the four under the Court's standards.[^maj-15] On March 3, 1963, an 18-year-old girl was kidnapped and forcibly raped near Phoenix, Arizona. Ten days later, on the morning of March 13, petitioner Miranda was arrested and taken to the police station. At this time Miranda was 23 years old, indigent,…