Also known as: deliberates · deliberated · deliberating · deliberation · deliberations · jury deliberation · deliberate intent
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An action or decision undertaken after careful thought and reflection rather than impulsively.
Diane Dawson ordered deckhand Dustin Donovan to lean over the rail to inspect a net. She then pried his hands loose with a boat hook and shoved him into rough seas. The deliberate character of the push established express malice and supported a murder conviction.
Dominic Drake and two other qualified directors met without Darius Dixon present. They deliberated the terms of a transaction in which Dixon held a material interest and then voted to approve it. Their separate deliberation satisfied the statutory requirement for effective authorization.
Denise Donovan mailed a detailed letter accusing a competitor of fraud to dozens of industry contacts. The deliberate and premeditated character of the written publication, together with its wide dissemination, weighed in favor of classifying the statement as libel rather than slander.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
A magazine reporter changed the words attributed to public figure Diego Duarte so that the statement conveyed the opposite meaning. The deliberate alteration that materially changed the sense of the quotation supplied evidence of actual malice sufficient to defeat summary judgment.
A prosecutor remained inside the grand-jury room after the jurors retired. The deliberate decision to stay and listen supplied grounds to challenge the indictment for unauthorized presence during proceedings.
Dominion Capital held land in State A but the parties and trust were centered in State B. The court examined the purpose of each state's property rules and the states' respective relations to the land before selecting the law of most significant relationship.
Deliberate intent to kill supplies express malice. Implied malice arises from intent to cause great bodily injury or from reckless indifference showing an abandoned and malignant heart.
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The qualified directors must deliberate and vote on the transaction outside the presence and without the participation of any interested director.
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The deliberate and premeditated nature of the publication, along with its area of dissemination and persistence, helps determine whether the statement is libel rather than slander.
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Deliberate alteration creates actual malice only when the change produces a material difference in the meaning conveyed. Trivial changes are insufficient.
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…be performed by him; the last act to be done by the President is the signature of the commission. After signature the time for deliberation has passed and the officer is appointed. If the commission is also to be considered the appointment the appointment is made when the last act required from the President is performed; the…