bill of particulars

American  

noun

Law.

1. a formal statement prepared by a plaintiff or a defendant itemizing a claim or counterclaim in a suit.

2. an itemized statement prepared by the prosecution and informing the accused of the charges in a criminal case.

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Etymology

Origin of bill of particulars

First recorded in 1855–60

Example Sentences

House Speaker Mike Johnson wrapped up this bill of particulars with a prediction during a press conference last week.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 21, 2025

The bill of particulars that the committee offers is detailed and devastating.

From Salon • Jul. 11, 2023

Bowles’ bill of particulars wasn’t too different from many other analyses striving to make sense of the recall vote.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 14, 2022

Lyle Denniston, who has attended more Supreme Court arguments than any other journalist and quite possibly more than anyone alive, issued a bill of particulars objecting to the new format after the second conference-call argument.

From New York Times • May 18, 2020

Austria's demand for a "bill of particulars" was aptly expressed in this hostile view of the American note.

From The Story of the Great War, Volume IV (of 8) Champagne, Artois, Grodno; Fall of Nish; Caucasus; Mesopotamia; Development of Air Strategy; United States and the War by Miller, Francis Trevelyan