miscarriage of justice

Idioms  

1. An unfair decision, especially one in a court of law. For example, Many felt that his being expelled from the school was a miscarriage of justice. This expression, which uses miscarriage in the sense of “making a blunder,” was first recorded in 1875.

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Example Sentences

John Price KC, prosecuting, told jurors that Malkinson had been "the victim of a most terrible miscarriage of justice, one of the worst there has been".

From BBC • Mar. 4, 2026

The 90-minute film does not claim to be exhaustive, but aims to offer the public the perspectives of both sides of a case that continues to prompt questions and accusations of a miscarriage of justice.

From Barron's • Feb. 4, 2026

European chief executive Paul Patterson said Fujitsu had been given £500m of contract extensions despite its faulty software being at the centre of the huge miscarriage of justice.

From BBC • Jan. 6, 2026

She died in February 2017, less than 24 hours after being detained in a mental health unit, after struggling to cope with the miscarriage of justice.

From BBC • Oct. 11, 2025

To prove her point that she considered the trial a miscarriage of justice, Anthony had three thousand copies of the court transcript printed and distributed across the country to politicians, libraries, and suffrage groups.

From "Votes for Women!" by Winifred Conkling