Defensor

In Civil Law. A defender; one who takes upon himself the defense of another's cause, assuming his liabilities. An advocate in court. In this sense the word is very general in its signification, including advocatus, patronus, procurator, etc. A tutor or guardian. Calv. Lex. In Old English Law. A guardian or protector.

Spelman.

The defendant; a warrantor.

Bracton.

In Canon Law. The advocate of a church. The patron. See "Advocatus." An officer having charge of the temporal affairs of the church.

Spelman.

DEFENSOR CIVITATIS (Lat. defender of the state). In Roman law. An officer whose business it was to transact certain business of the state. Those officers were so called who, like the tribunes of the people at first, were chosen by the people in the large cities and towns, and whose duty it was to watch over the order of the city, protect the people and the decuriones from all harm, protect sailors and naval people, attend to the complaints of those who had suffered injuries, and discharge various other duties. As will be seen, they had considerable judicial power. Du Cange; Schmidt, Civ. Law, Introd.

16.

DEFENSUM (Law. Lat.) In old English law. An inclosure, or any fenced ground.,2 Mon. Ang. 114; 3 Mon. Ang. 306. Inclusum et positum in defensum, inclosed and put in defense or fence. Bracton, fol.

228.

A part of an open field, appropriated to a particular use, as for hay, which was hence said to be in defenso.

Cowell.

A state of several occupancy or appropriation. Magna Charta, c.

16.

Defense, in the old sense of prohibition; a state of prohibition, or in which the use of a thing is prohibited by law. St. Westminster II. c.

47.