special plea

American  

noun

Law.

1. a plea that alleges special or new matter as an answer to the allegations made by the opposite side and not as a denial of them.

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Etymology

Origin of special plea

First recorded in 1710–20

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

special plea

It's a special plea for a form of moral reckoning, one that worship of the marketplace has made impossible.

From Salon ● Dec. 25, 2021

"The special plea is dismissed," Judge Piet Koen said.

From Reuters ● Oct. 26, 2021

"I make a special plea to women who are pregnant or are breastfeeding. There is no impediment to you getting your vaccine," he said.

From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2021

It would take an awful lot of interpretive hopscotch to see “J’accuse” as a special plea on behalf of its director, and it would come at the expense of actually seeing the movie itself.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2019

Mrs. Mary B. Clay, of Kentucky, president of the association, made a special plea for work in the South, saying in part: Alabama has given married women equal property rights with their husbands.

From The History of Woman Suffrage, Volume IV by Harper, Ida Husted