DOMESTIC AUTHORITY
domestic authority. 1. The legal power to use nondeadly force when reasonably necessary to
protect a person for whom one is responsible. 2. A defense allowing a person responsible for
another (such as a parent responsible for a child) to use nondeadly force when reasonably
necessary to protect the person being cared for. [Cases: Assault and Battery 14, 68. C.J.S.
Assault and Battery §§ 22, 93.] [Blacks Law 8th]