Legal Definitions - accusatrix

An accusatrix refers to a woman who formally brings a charge or accusation against another person, particularly in a legal or judicial setting. This term is considered historical and is not commonly used in modern legal language.

• Imagine a scene in 17th-century colonial America where a woman named Martha testifies in court, claiming her neighbor, Sarah, used dark magic to sicken her livestock. Martha, by formally accusing Sarah of witchcraft, would have been referred to as the accusatrix in that historical legal proceeding.

• Consider a medieval village court session where Lady Eleanor presents a complaint against a local farmer, alleging he has illegally diverted water from her stream to irrigate his fields, thereby damaging her crops. Lady Eleanor, as the woman initiating the formal complaint and bringing the charge against the farmer, would have been considered the accusatrix in that historical context.

• In a 19th-century English court, Mrs. Davies stands before a magistrate, accusing her former housekeeper of stealing a valuable family heirloom. Mrs. Davies, as the woman making the formal accusation of theft against the housekeeper, would have been referred to as the accusatrix by those involved in the case at that time.