Legal Dictionary of Pakistan
Quick lookup for English, Urdu, and Latin legal terms used in Pakistani jurisprudence.
impulse
n. A sudden urge or inclination that prompts an unplanned action.
irresistible-impulse test
Criminal law. A test for insanity, holding that a person is not criminally responsible for an act if mental disease prevented that person from controlling potentially criminal conduct. ( The few jurisdictions that have adopted this test have combined it with the McNaghten rules. - Also termed control test; volitional test. See INSANITY DEFENSE; MCNAGHTEN RULES. "The first reaction of the legal profession to the irresistible impulse defense, when it was introduced to the law many years ago, was inclined to be favorable. Then a change set in and for many years the prevailing view was strongly against its recognition. Present indications are that the tide is changing again. There seems to be a growing belief to the effect that ignoring the possibility of such a defense fails to give full recognition to the fundamental concept of mens rea." Rollin M. Perkins & Ronald N. Boyce, Criminal Law 975 (3d ed. 1982).
single-impulse plan
See SINGLE-LARCENY DOCTRINE.
uncontrollable impulse
An impulse that is so overwhelming that it cannot be resisted. ( In some jurisdictions, an uncontrollable impulse serves as a defense to criminal conduct committed while in the grip of the impulse. See IRRESISTIBLE-IMPULSE TEST.