Legal Definitions - summa injuria

Definition: Summa injuria is a Latin term that means the greatest injury or injustice.

Definition: Summa necessitate is a Latin term that refers to extreme necessity.

Definition: Necessity is a legal defense that justifies a person's actions in an emergency situation where they did not create the emergency and the harm caused is less severe than the harm that would have occurred if they did not act.

For example, if a mountain climber is lost in a blizzard and steals food and blankets from another's cabin to survive, they can assert necessity as a defense.

• Military Necessity: A necessity that arises in a military context.
• Moral Necessity: A necessity that arises from a duty to act in a particular way.
• Physical Necessity: A necessity that involves an actual, tangible force that compels a person to act in a particular way.
• Private Necessity: A necessity that involves only the defendant's personal interest and provides a limited privilege.
• Public Necessity: A necessity that involves the public interest and completely excuses the defendant's liability.

For example, if a defendant destroys a plaintiff's house to stop the spread of a fire that threatens the town, they can assert public necessity.

Definition: Manifest necessity is a sudden and overwhelming emergency that makes conducting a trial or reaching a fair result impossible and authorizes the granting of a mistrial.

For example, if a juror becomes ill during a trial and cannot continue, a mistrial may be granted due to manifest necessity.

Definition: The rule of necessity allows for a decision to be made by a person who would normally be disqualified from making that decision due to a conflict of interest or bias.

For example, if all judges in a court are disqualified from hearing a case, a judge from another court may be brought in to hear the case under the rule of necessity.