- prior restraint
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prior restraint n: governmental prohibition on expression (esp. by publication) before the expression actually takes place see also near v. minnesota and new york times co. v. united states in the important cases section compare censorship, freedom of speech◇ In New York Times Co. v. United States, the U.S. Supreme Court restated its position that “any system of prior restraints” bears “a heavy presumption against constitutional validity” and that the government “carries a heavy burden of showing justification for the imposition of such a restraint.”
Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam-Webster. 1996.
- prior restraint
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n.A restriction placed on a kind of free expression before it has actually been used, e.g., a prohibition placed on a certain kind of publication before anyone has created such a publication.
The Essential Law Dictionary. — Sphinx Publishing, An imprint of Sourcebooks, Inc. Amy Hackney Blackwell. 2008.
- prior restraint
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Government action that prevents a publication or broadcast. Prior restraints are considered a violation of the First Amendment and are rarely permitted except in cases in which the publication is obscene, defamatory, or represents a clear and present danger — a theory articulated by the U. S. Supreme Court in Near v. Minnesota (1931).Category: Small Claims Court & Lawsuits
Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary. Gerald N. Hill, Kathleen Thompson Hill. 2009.
- prior restraint
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n. An unconstitutional prohibition in advance of a publication or communication before such communication or publication occurred. Prior restraint violated the First Amendment of the United States Constitution, except in cases of obscenity, defamation, or its representing "a clear and present danger" (Oliver Wendall Holmes, Jr.), and even in such cases, it is rarely upheld.
Webster's New World Law Dictionary. Susan Ellis Wild. 2000.
- prior restraint
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Government prohibition of speech in advance of publication.
Dictionary from West's Encyclopedia of American Law. 2005.
- prior restraint
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Government prohibition of speech in advance of publication.
Short Dictionary of (mostly American) Legal Terms and Abbreviations.
- prior restraint
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n.an attempt to prevent publication or broadcast of any statement, which is an unconstitutional restraint on free speech and free press (even in the guise of an anti-nuisance ordinance). Stemming from the First Amendment to the Constitution, the ban on prior restraint allows publication of libel, slander, obvious untruths, anti-government diatribes, racial and religious epithets, and almost any material, except if public security or public safety is endangered (false claim of poison in the reservoir or exhortation to commit a crime like a lynching) and some forms of pornography. The theory, articulated by the U.S. Supreme Court in Near v. Minnesota (1931) is that free speech and free press protections have priority, and lawsuits for libel and slander and prosecutions for criminal advocacy will curb the effect of defamation and untruths. Most other nations permit prior restraint by court order or police action when the material appears to be defamatory (hurtful lies), salacious (nasty), or "improper, mischievous, or illegal" (in the words of Sir William Blackstone).
Law dictionary. EdwART. 2013.
