Criminal Maintenance (Noun)
Meaning
The unauthorized interference in a legal action by a person having no interest in it (as by helping one party with money or otherwise to continue the action) so as to obstruct justice or promote unnecessary litigation or unsettle the peace of the community; "unlike champerty, criminal maintenance does not necessarily involve personal profit".
Classification
Nouns denoting acts or actions.
Examples
- The lawyer was accused of criminal maintenance for secretly funding his friend's lawsuit against a rival businessman.
- The court found the billionaire guilty of criminal maintenance for financing a frivolous lawsuit against a competitor.
- Criminal maintenance charges were brought against the activist for supporting a group of protesters who were suing the city.
- The judge dismissed the case, citing criminal maintenance by a third party who had no legitimate interest in the outcome.
- The government instituted laws to prevent criminal maintenance, which was seen as a major obstacle to justice and social order.