Legal Definitions - defendere unica manu

Definition: Defendere unica manu (di-fen-də-ree yoo-nə-kə man-yoo), n. [Law Latin “to defend with one hand”] is a historical legal term that refers to a denial of an accusation under oath.

Example: In medieval times, if someone was accused of a crime, they could defend themselves by taking an oath of innocence. This was called defendere unica manu, which meant they were swearing to their innocence with only one hand raised.

Explanation: The term defendere unica manu comes from the practice of raising one hand while taking an oath. This was a way of showing that the person was telling the truth and was willing to defend themselves against the accusation. By raising only one hand, they were showing that they had nothing to hide and were not using any tricks to deceive the court. This practice was common in medieval times and was used in many legal proceedings.