Legal Definitions - prender de baron

Prender de baron is a historical legal term derived from Law French, meaning "a taking of husband." In historical legal practice, this plea was used to argue that a woman who had remarried after her husband's murder should no longer be permitted to pursue an appeal in the murder case against the alleged killer.

The underlying principle often held that her legal standing or personal interest in the prosecution of her deceased husband's killer was diminished or transferred upon her new marriage, thereby disqualifying her from continuing the legal action.

• Example 1: Appeal Against a Conviction

  Imagine a woman named Lady Eleanor whose husband, Lord Thomas, was tragically murdered. A suspect was convicted, but Lady Eleanor believed the sentence was too lenient and that the trial had overlooked crucial evidence. She decided to pursue an appeal to challenge the conviction. However, before her appeal could be heard, she remarried Sir Richard. The defense counsel for the convicted individual then invoked the plea of prender de baron, arguing that her new marriage to Sir Richard meant she no longer had the legal standing as the "widow" of Lord Thomas to continue her appeal in the murder case.

• Example 2: Appeal Against an Acquittal

  Consider the case of a merchant's wife, Mrs. Agnes, whose husband was killed during a robbery. The accused was brought to trial and, to Mrs. Agnes's dismay, was acquitted. Determined to see justice done, she initiated a private appeal against the acquittal, a right that was sometimes available historically. During the lengthy legal process, she married another merchant. The legal team for the acquitted individual then presented the argument of prender de baron, contending that her remarriage had extinguished her personal right to pursue the appeal concerning her first husband's murder, as her legal identity and interests were now tied to her new spouse.