Also known as: immaturities · immature · infancy defense · juvenile immaturity
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A developmental condition of persons under the age of majority marked by incomplete judgment, impulse control, and foresight. This condition renders minors vulnerable to exploitation and less culpable for their actions than adults. The law therefore supplies special protections, including the power to disaffirm contracts and categorical bars on the most severe criminal punishments.
Ines Ibarra, age seventeen, opened a margin trading account with Apex Online Brokerage by clicking an electronic box. After incurring large losses, she refused payment when the firm demanded the debit balance. Because she remained a minor, she could disaffirm the agreement and avoid liability.
Eugene, seventeen, deliberately opened a high-pressure valve at his refinery job, causing an explosion that killed a coworker. The state sought capital charges based on the premeditated act and specialized training he had received. His age at the time of the offense categorically precluded the death penalty.
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Iain Irons, a juvenile, committed armed robbery and was sentenced to life without parole. The offense did not involve homicide or an intent to kill. The categorical prohibition on such sentences for juveniles applied regardless of the crime's severity.
India Inoue, a pregnant minor, sought an abortion without notifying her parents. State law required parental consent but provided a judicial bypass option. The bypass allowed her to demonstrate either sufficient maturity or that the procedure served her best interests.
Ingrid Innes, age fourteen, participated in a robbery that ended in murder. A state statute imposed a mandatory life sentence without parole. The sentence was invalidated because it failed to account for the offender's youth and potential for rehabilitation.
Ivy Ibarra, a minor, received materials that an adult would find non-obscene. Prosecutors applied an adjusted community standard reflecting the audience's age. The materials were deemed obscene when evaluated under that adjusted measure.
No. The infancy doctrine protects minors from their own immaturity even when they lie about their age. The adult party bears the risk of dealing with a minor, and the minor may still avoid the contract.
The Eighth Amendment categorically bars the death penalty for offenders under eighteen at the time of the crime. This bright-line rule rests on juveniles' lesser maturity, greater susceptibility to influence, and still-forming character.
Yes. A minor may disaffirm most contracts at any time while still underage or within a reasonable period after reaching majority. Partial performance does not convert the agreement into an enforceable obligation.
…a pregnant minor to "demonstrate that she is sufficiently mature to make the abortion decision herself or that, despite her immaturity, an abortion would be in her best interests"); Bellotti v. Baird , 443 U. S. 622 (1979). We think it beyond dispute that a State "has a strong and legitimate interest in the welfare of…