outlawry

(out'lô'rē)

1. The act or process of outlawing or the state of having been outlawed.
2. Defiance of the law.

[Middle English outlauerie, from Anglo-Norman utlagerie and from Medieval Latin ūtlagāria, both from Old English ūtlaga, outlaw. See outlaw.]

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Outlawry originated as the community's way of dealing with a violent or dangerous wrongdoer. A declaration of outlawry deprived the outlaw of the protection of the king and the law; his property was forfeit to the king and he could be killed with impunity.

A declaration under Old English law by which a person found in contempt on a civil or criminal process was considered an outlaw — that is, someone who is beyond the protection or assistance of the law.

During the Anglo-Saxon period of English history, a person who committed certain crimes lost whatever protection he or she had under the law, forfeited whatever property he or she owned, and could be killed by anyone. If the crime committed was treason or a felony, a declaration of outlawry was tantamount to a conviction and attainder. Outlawry for a misdemeanor did not, however, amount to a conviction for the offense. The Norman Conquest led to significant changes in the law governing outlawry, eventually leading to its abolition.