Bill Of Rights

Definition: Bill Of Rights

Bill Of Rights

Noun

1. A statement of fundamental rights and privileges (especially the first ten amendments to the US Constitution).

Domain	Definitions
Literature	Bill of Rights The declaration delivered to the Prince of Orange on his election to the British throne, confirming the rights and privileges of the people. (Feb. 13th, 1689.). Source: Brewer's Dictionary.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

A bill of rights is a statement of certain rights that citizens and/or residents of a free and democratic society have (or ought to have) under the laws of that society.

In some jurisdictions, the bill of rights is entrenched in the constitution or Basic Law of that nation-state. When embedded in the constitution, it can prescribe the limits of power the government has to intervene in the lives of its citizens. In other jurisdictions, the definition of rights may be statutory. (In other words, it may be repealed just like any other law and does not necessarily hold greater weight than other laws). Not all jurisdictions enforce the protection of the rights articulated in their bill of rights. The Soviet Union, in particular, was often criticized for failure to live up to its stated standards.

A 'bill of rights' may also be an aspirational statement of the rights that citizens ought to have even though the defining body does not have the ability to enforce the protection of those rights. The UN's Universal Declaration of Human Rights is currently an example^†.

Diminishment of rights already granted in a bill of rights (such as by repeal of statutory rights or by statutory infringement of constitutionally granted rights) may cause civil unrest, civil disobedience or even revolution. A common concern of libertarians is the gradual erosion of rights, especially those articulated in their respective bills of rights. This is a particular concern during times of war or crisis when certain of the rights may be perceived as a luxury compared to security concerns.

Crosswords: Bill Of Rights

English words defined with "Bill of Rights": Declaration of rights ♦ Fourteenth Amendment ♦ George Mason ♦ James Madison ♦ Madison, Mason ♦ Non obstante ♦ President Madison. (references)

Specialty definitions using "Bill of Rights": CDA, Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act of 1961 ♦ mundgeblasenes Antikglas. (references)

Domain	Title
Books	A Living Bill of Rights (reference) Crucible of Liberty: 200 Years of the Bill of Rights (reference) In Our Defense: The Bill of Rights in Action (reference) Origins of the Bill of Rights (reference) The Bill of Rights (Cornerstones of Freedom) (reference) (more book examples)

Periodicals	William & Mary Bill Of Rights Journal (reference) (more periodical examples)

Theater & Movies	Just the Facts - United States Constitution and Bill of Rights (reference) Just the Facts: United States Bill of Rights and Constitutional Amendments (reference) What is the Constitution?-The Bill of Rights (reference) (more DVD examples; more video examples)

Music	Bill of Rights (reference) (more classical music examples; more popular music examples)
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Thumbnail	Description & Credit	Thumbnail	Description & Credit
	End the conspiracy against the Bill of Rights : dump Mitchell.Credit: Library of Congress.		Bill of Rights : void where prohibited by law.Credit: Library of Congress.
	The American Civil Liberties Union : illustrated guide to the Bill of Rights.Credit: Library of Congress.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Author	Date	Quotation
US Bill of Rights	1795	Amendment VIII. Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted. (reference)
Winston S. Churchill	1946	But we must never cease to proclaim in fearless tones the great principles of freedom and the rights of man which are the joint inheritance of the English-speaking world and which through Magna Carta, the Bill of Rights, the Habeas Corpus, trial by jury, and the English common law find their most famous expression in the American Declaration of Independence. ("Iron Curtain" Speech)
Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Subject	Topic	Quote
Health		A free copy of the Patient's Bill of Rights is available from the American Hospital Association. (references)
		Click on "Resource Center," go to "Search" at bottom of page, and then type in "Patient's Bill of Rights." (references)
Children	Brazil	On April 6, President Cardoso signed into law what is essentially a patients' bill of rights, which for the first time establishes clear criteria for commitment into mental institutions and gives the Public Minister (an independent watchdog agency) an opportunity to review each case of involuntary or compulsory commitment. (references)
Civil Liberties	South Africa	The photographers and editor of Die Burger newspaper contested their subpoenas in court under the clauses on media freedom and freedom of speech in the Bill of Rights. (references)
	Hong Kong	The Basic Law provides for freedom of religion, the Bill of Rights Ordinance prohibits religious discrimination and the Government respects these provisions in practice. (references)
Economic History	South Africa	The bill of rights also guarantees fundamental political and social rights of South Africa's citizens. (references)
	Namibia	After 80 days, the Constituent Assembly produced a constitution which established a multi-party system and a bill of rights. (references)
	New Zealand	The public receives protection under a Bill of Rights and may obtain information on request under the Official Information Act. (references)
Minorities	South Africa	The Constitution and Bill of Rights prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, ethnic or social origin, or culture. (references)
Political Economy	Australia	Australia has never enacted a written bill of rights, but fundamental rights are ensured by law and respected in practice. (references)
	Indonesia	In a departure from past practice (in which the MPR only met once every five years), the MPR, chaired by Amien Rais of the PAN Party, held its first annual session in August 2000 and reached consensus on several constitutional amendments, including the addition of a bill of rights. (references)
Political Rights	Hong Kong	The Court unanimously found that the practice violated both the Bill of Rights and the Sex Discrimination Ordinances. (references)
	Swaziland	Pressure has been building for several years to modernize the political system, and both the King and the Government recognize that there is a need for political reform, including the drafting of a new constitution and, specifically, a bill of rights. (references)
	Fiji	Included in the 1997 Constitution was a strengthened bill of rights and a compact among the country's citizens to protect their respective rights and interests; however, the Constitution acknowledged that the interests of indigenous Fijians remained paramount and could not be subordinated to the interests of other communities. (references)
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits.

Speaker	Term	Phrase(s)
Bill Clinton	1993-2001	Pass a strong, enforceable Patients' Bill of Rights.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Language		Translations for "Bill of Rights"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses.
Greek		διακύρηξη των δικαιωμάτων. (various references)

Pig Latin		illbay ofay ightsray

Russian		билль о правах. (various references)

Spanish		carta de derechos. (various references)

Turkish		insan hakları beyannamesi. (various references)
Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references.

Misspellings
	"Bill Of Rights" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: bil of rights, bill og rights. (additional references)
Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references).

Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams
	Words within the letters "b-f-g-h-i-i-l-l-o-r-s-t"
	-4 letters: billfish, fishbolt, strobili.
	-5 letters: bigshot, blights, brights, bristol, fibrils, flights, florist, frights, ghiblis, girlish, strigil, strobil, thrills, tigrish.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro.