DISCRETION

discretion (di-skresh-<<schwa>>n).1. Wise conduct and management; cautious discernment;

prudence. 2. Individual judgment; the power of free decision-making.

sole  discretion.An  individual’s  power  to  make  decisions  without  anyone  else’s  advice  or

3.Criminal  &  tort  law.  The  capacity  to  distinguish  between  right  and  wrong,  sufficient  to

make a person responsible for his or her own actions. [Cases: Criminal Law    46. C.J.S. Criminal

Law §§ 96–98, 113.] 4. A public official’s power or right to act in certain circumstances according

to  personal  judgment  and  conscience,  often  in  an  official  or  representative  capacity.  —  Also

termed discretionary power.

administrative  discretion.A  public  official’s  or  agency’s  power  to  exercise  judgment  in  the

discharge  of  its  duties.  [Cases:  Administrative  Law  and  Procedure    324,  754.  C.J.S.  Public

Administrative Law and Procedure §§ 60, 206, 223.]

judicial discretion.The exercise of judgment by a judge or court based on what is fair under

the circumstances and guided by the rules and principles of law; a court’s power to act or not act

when  a  litigant  is  not  entitled  to  demand  the  act  as  a  matter  of  right.  —  Also  termed  legal

discretion. [Cases: Courts    26. C.J.S. Courts §§ 3, 64–65, 67.]

prosecutorial  discretion.A  prosecutor’s  power  to  choose  from  the  options  available  in  a

criminal   case,   such   as   filing   charges,   prosecuting,   not   prosecuting,   plea-bargaining,   and

recommending  a  sentence  to  the  court.  [Cases:  Criminal  Law    29(3);  District  and  Prosecuting

Attorneys    8. C.J.S. District and Prosecuting Attorneys §§ 20–21, 29–30.] [Blacks Law 8th]