Also known as: reasonable-belief exception · reasonable belief exceptions · reasonable belief
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An exception to a general prohibition or disqualification that applies when a person holds a belief that is reasonable under the circumstances.
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Officers arrest a suspect inside his home on drug charges. They hear footsteps upstairs and see movement near a closet. Based on those specific facts, they conduct a limited sweep of areas where a person could hide. The sweep reveals a confederate with a weapon. The reasonable belief exception permits the sweep because the officers' belief that the area harbored a dangerous individual rests on articulable facts.
Rowan is confronted by an assailant wielding a knife and advancing rapidly. Rowan draws a baton and strikes the assailant's arm to disarm him. The blow breaks the assailant's wrist. The reasonable belief exception permits the use of force because Rowan reasonably believed the attack threatened serious bodily harm differing in kind from minor injury.
The belief must be held by the actor and supported by circumstances that would lead a reasonable person in the same position to reach the same conclusion.
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No. The exception turns on whether the belief is reasonable, not on whether it ultimately proves accurate.
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It allows a lawyer to proceed with representation despite a conflict when the lawyer reasonably believes the representation will not be adversely affected.
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