Also known as: propositions · legal proposition
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A statement or assertion advanced as true or as a basis for argument or proof in legal proceedings.
Portia Price was charged with theft. After the information was filed the trial court entered a final judgment of dismissal because the prosecution could not prove an essential element. The judgment has not been reversed. Under the governing rule the dismissal rests on a determination inconsistent with a legal proposition that must be established for conviction, so a second prosecution for the same offense is barred.
Pamela Phillips, a city official, sued a newspaper for publishing statements about her performance. The court required her to prove actual malice by clear and convincing evidence before any recovery could be had. The proposition that public officials must meet this heightened standard controlled the outcome of the litigation.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Paula Pierce and her partner sought a marriage license that state law denied to same-sex couples. The court held that the fundamental right to marry includes same-sex couples and that the state law violated equal protection. The proposition that marriage is a fundamental right under the Due Process Clause determined the result.
Patrick Phan alleged that federal agents conducted an unreasonable search of his apartment. The court recognized an implied cause of action for damages directly under the Fourth Amendment. The proposition that federal officials may be held liable for constitutional violations supplied the basis for relief.
Pinnacle Holdings owned Grand Central Terminal. New York City designated the building a landmark and denied permission to build a tower above it. The court applied a multi-factor test to decide whether the regulation constituted a taking. The proposition that investment-backed expectations must be weighed against the character of the government action guided the decision.
Phoebe Park challenged a state criminal statute that banned nearly all abortions. The court recognized a constitutional right of privacy that encompasses a woman's decision to terminate a pregnancy. The proposition that this right is fundamental and subject to strict scrutiny shaped the analysis of the statute's validity.
It refers to any statement of law or fact that the prosecution must establish to obtain a conviction. A final judgment for the defendant that necessarily rejects such a proposition bars a later prosecution for the same offense.
A factual proposition is an assertion about what occurred that evidence is offered to prove or disprove. A legal proposition is a rule or principle of law that must be accepted or rejected to decide the case.
Dicta may supply persuasive reasoning but do not bind later courts the way a holding does. A proposition stated in dicta lacks the force of precedent on the precise issue presented.
Due process and the presumption of innocence require the prosecution to prove every element of the offense. If a final judgment has already determined that a necessary proposition cannot be proved, retrial is barred.
…Amendment. As Mr. Justice Black's opinion for the Court in Skrupa put it: "We have returned to the original constitutional proposition that courts do not substitute their social and economic beliefs for the judgment of legislative bodies, who are elected to pass laws." Id. , at 730.[^maj-1] Barely two years later, in…