Bar

1.

A partition or railing running across a court-room, intended to separate the general public from the space occupied by the judges, counsel, jury, and others concerned in the trialof acause, In the English courts itis the partition behind which all outer-barristers and every member of the public must stand. Solicitors, being officers of the court, are adinitted within it; as are also queen’s counsel, barristers with patents of precedence, and serjeants, in virtue of theirranks. Parties who appear in person also ure placed within the bar on the tloor of the court.

2.

The terra alsodesignates a particular part of the court-room; for example, the place where prisoners stand af their trial, whence constructive, of the court. Thus, a trial at bar is one had before the full court, distinguished from a trial had before a single judge at nisi prius. So the “case at bar” is the case now before the court and under ils consideration; the case being tried or argued.

4.

In the practice of legislative boilies, the bar is the outer boundary of the house, and therefore all persons, not being members, who wish to address the honse, or are sul moned to it, appear at the bar for that pur, pose.

5.

In another sense, the whole body of attorneys and counsellors, or the members of the legal profession, collectively, are figuratively ealled the “bar,” from the place which they usually oecupy in court. They are thus distinguished from the “bench,” which term denotes the whole body of judges.

6.

In the law of contracts, “bar” means an impediment, an obstacle, or preventive barrier. Thus, relationship within the prohibite degrees is a bar to marriage.

7.

It further means that which defeats, annuls, cuts off, or puts an end to. Thus,a provision “in bar of dower” is one which has the effect of defeating or cutting off the dowertights which the wife would otherwise become entitled to in the particular land.

8.

In pleading, it denoted a special plea, constituting a sufficient answer to an action at law; and so called because it barred, i. ¢., prevented, the plaintiff from further prose cuting it with effect, and, if established by proof, defeated and destroyed the action altogether. Now called a special “plea in bar.”

See Plea in BAR.