Vacated judgment
Encyclopedia
A vacated judgment makes a previous legal judgment legally void. A vacated judgment is usually the result of the judgment of an appellate court
which overturns, reverses, or sets aside the judgment of a lower court.
A trial court may have the power under certain circumstances, usually involving fraud or lack of jurisdiction over the parties to a case, to vacate its own judgments.
A vacated judgment may free the parties to civil litigation to re-litigate the issues subject to the vacated judgment.
which can be restored on vacation of the judgment.
Relief from judgment in the United States district court
s is governed by Rule 60 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
noted that a vacated judgment "place[s] the parties in the position of no trial having taken place at all." United States v. Williams
, 904 F.2d 7, 8 (7th Cir. 1990).
; the conviction is not actually made void, but is considered to be spent after a rehabilitation period, and need not be divulged in most circumstances. If details of a spent conviction are made public by others with malice, the publisher may be subject to libel damages despite the fact that what is said is true. (By contrast, under United States law truth is a complete defense to charges of libel and slander; the only form of true statement actionable under U.S. defamation law is "public disclosure of private facts", which would be inapplicable here because the existence of the non-voided conviction is a matter of public record.)
Appellate court
An appellate court, commonly called an appeals court or court of appeals or appeal court , is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal...
which overturns, reverses, or sets aside the judgment of a lower court.
A trial court may have the power under certain circumstances, usually involving fraud or lack of jurisdiction over the parties to a case, to vacate its own judgments.
A vacated judgment may free the parties to civil litigation to re-litigate the issues subject to the vacated judgment.
USA
Convictions for some criminal offences in the US can cause those convicted to lose some civil rightsCivil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
which can be restored on vacation of the judgment.
Relief from judgment in the United States district court
United States district court
The United States district courts are the general trial courts of the United States federal court system. Both civil and criminal cases are filed in the district court, which is a court of law, equity, and admiralty. There is a United States bankruptcy court associated with each United States...
s is governed by Rule 60 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the courts in the following districts:* Central District of Illinois* Northern District of Illinois...
noted that a vacated judgment "place[s] the parties in the position of no trial having taken place at all." United States v. Williams
United States v. Williams
United States v. Williams, 553 U.S. 285 , was a decision by the Supreme Court of the United States that a federal statute prohibiting the "pandering" of child pornography did not violate the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, even if a person charged under the code did not in fact...
, 904 F.2d 7, 8 (7th Cir. 1990).
UK
A related concept in the UK is the automatic spent conviction for certain less severe criminal offences, introduced in the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974
The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 of the UK Parliament enables some criminal convictions to be ignored after a rehabilitation period. Its purpose is that people do not have a lifelong blot on their records because of a relatively minor offence in their past. The rehabilitation period is...
; the conviction is not actually made void, but is considered to be spent after a rehabilitation period, and need not be divulged in most circumstances. If details of a spent conviction are made public by others with malice, the publisher may be subject to libel damages despite the fact that what is said is true. (By contrast, under United States law truth is a complete defense to charges of libel and slander; the only form of true statement actionable under U.S. defamation law is "public disclosure of private facts", which would be inapplicable here because the existence of the non-voided conviction is a matter of public record.)