Definition of Diplock court noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary


Diplock court

; NAmE
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a special court of law in Northern Ireland for people accused of terrorist offences. Diplock courts were set up in 1972 under the British judge Lord Diplock (1907-85) when the normal system of trial by jury had become difficult because jury members were being threatened and even murdered. In Diplock courts, each case is heard by a single judge. The absence of a jury has been criticized as unfair, although the accused person has certain extra rights in these courts.