bar 1 /'bär/ n often attrib
1 a: the railing in a courtroom that encloses the area around the judge where prisoners are stationed in criminal cases or where the business of the court is transacted in civil cases compare bench 1, dock, jury box, stand
b: court tribunal
the younger judge brought a fresh viewpoint to the bar
2 a: the whole body of lawyers; esp: those qualified to practice in the courts of a particular jurisdiction
admitted to the Arizona bar
the bankruptcy bar compare bench 3b
b: the profession or occupation of lawyer
passed the bar
3: something that prevents admission, progress, or action: as
a: an intangible impediment, obstacle, or barrier
the restrictive covenant raised a racial bar
consent of the victim is a bar to conviction
b: the permanent preclusion of a claim or action esp. due to the loss of a previous suit based on the same cause of action and between the same parties
its earlier successful suit against the purchaser for the price was a bar to the present suit — Martino v. McDonald's System, Inc., 598 F.2d 1079 (1979)
a statute of limitations bar to the present action compare collateral estoppel at estoppel 2a, merger 4, res judicata 2
at bar: before the court
in the case at bar
at the bar: in the legal profession
pressures faced by women at the bar — R. E. Hauser
bar 2 vt barred, bar·ring
1: to keep out: exclude
cannot bar the items from sale
2: to prevent from doing or accomplishing (something)
plaintiff's conduct may bar her recovery
the contract bar s his reinstatement
3: preclude: as
a: to act as a bar to (as a claim or action)
liberative prescription bar s actions — Louisiana Civil Code
final judgment barred the subsequent claim
b: to prevent (a party) from bringing a claim or action
plaintiffs are barred by the judgment...from relitigating their claims — Roach v. Teamsters Local Union No. 688, 595 F.2d 446 (1979) see also estop compare merge 2
bar·ra·ble adj
Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam-Webster. 1996.