due process

6 synonyms for due process, grouped by meaning and by how common each one is.

Noun — The requirement that the state treat a person fairly and follow established legal procedures before depriving them of life, liberty or property, including fair notice of the charges and a chance to be heard.

Synonyms

Rare, literary or technical

Precise, but they will stand out — check the sense before using one.

due process of law fair hearing natural justice procedural fairness proper procedure correct process

Synonyms by Meaning

1. noun

The requirement that the state treat a person fairly and follow established legal procedures before depriving them of life, liberty or property, including fair notice of the charges and a chance to be heard.

“Holding him for six weeks without charge was a clear denial of due process.”

due process of law fair hearing natural justice procedural fairness

2. noun

By extension, any proper, orderly sequence of steps that an organisation is expected to follow before making a decision that affects someone.

“The union insisted the sacking be reviewed because due process had not been followed.”

proper procedure correct process

How to use due process

The word patterns that sound natural to a native speaker.

right to due process denial of due process due process of law due process rights without due process

Legal but widely used in general news writing; also used loosely in workplace and disciplinary contexts.

Etymology

From 'due', from Old French 'deu', past participle of 'devoir' (to owe, from Latin 'debere'), plus 'process', from Latin 'processus' (a going forward). The phrase 'due process of law' appears in English statute language from the fourteenth century.

Full origin of due process →

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between substantive and procedural due process?

Procedural due process is about how the government acts: it must give fair notice, a hearing and an impartial decision-maker before taking your liberty or property. Substantive due process is about what the government may do at all, protecting certain fundamental rights from interference no matter how fair the procedure is.

Does due process only apply to criminal cases?

No. It applies whenever the state deprives someone of life, liberty or property, so it covers deportation hearings, benefit terminations, licence revocations and school expulsions as well as criminal trials. The amount of process required varies with what is at stake.

Where does due process come from in US law?

It appears in the Fifth Amendment, which binds the federal government, and the Fourteenth Amendment, which binds the states. The underlying idea traces back to English law and the guarantee of judgment by the law of the land.

Nearby words

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