due process

noun

1

: a course of formal proceedings (such as legal proceedings) carried out regularly and in accordance with established rules and principles

called also procedural due process

2

: a judicial requirement that enacted laws may not contain provisions that result in the unfair, arbitrary, or unreasonable treatment of an individual

called also substantive due process

Examples of due process in a Sentence

Due process requires that evidence not be admitted when it is obtained through illegal methods.

Recent Examples on the Web

Employees could argue their jobs fall outside the scope of Schedule Policy/Career, that agencies violated their due process rights by not following the proper procedures, or that they were targeted for discriminatory reasons. —Daniel Wiessner, USA TODAY, 22 Jan. 2025

Supporters of immigrants’ rights say jail officials have shared information with ICE despite the sanctuary laws, and that more cooperation with deportation efforts would threaten migrant defendants’ rights to due process and would undermine trust between the police and people who witness crimes. —Luis Ferré-Sadurní, New York Times, 17 Jan. 2025

Following the school district's announcement, in May 2023, three sets of parents sued the Montgomery County Board of Education, alleging their First Amendment and due process rights were violated. —Melissa Quinn, CBS News, 17 Jan. 2025

Kiiza, who was sentenced to nine months in prison for alleged contempt of court, was forcibly removed from a courtroom and convicted without due process, Amnesty International said, calling his treatment outrageous and indicative of a broader crackdown on legal defenders in Uganda. —John Mac Ghlionn, Newsweek, 14 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Legal Definition

due process

noun

1

: a course of formal proceedings (as judicial proceedings) carried out regularly, fairly, and in accordance with established rules and principles

called also procedural due process

2

: a requirement that laws and regulations must be related to a legitimate government interest (as crime prevention) and may not contain provisions that result in the unfair or arbitrary treatment of an individual

called also substantive due process

Note: The guarantee of due process is found in the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution, which states “no person shall…be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law,” and in the Fourteenth Amendment, which states “nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.” The boundaries of due process are not fixed and are the subject of endless judicial interpretation and decision-making. Fundamental to procedural due process is adequate notice prior to the government's deprivation of one's life, liberty, or property, and an opportunity to be heard and defend one's rights to life, liberty, or property. Substantive due process is a limit on the government's power to enact laws or regulations that affect one's life, liberty, or property rights. It is a safeguard from governmental action that is not related to any legitimate government interest or that is unfair, irrational, or arbitrary in its furtherance of a government interest. The requirement of due process applies to agency actions.

3

: the right to due process

acts that violated due process