In criminal law, a miscarriage of justice can be defined as an outcome in a judicial proceeding that is unjust, unfair or improper. The term miscarriage is oftentimes used to describe an error made by the Court that results in the conviction of an innocent person for a crime they did not commit.
The term is primarily used to talk about wrongful convictions but can also encompass wrongful arrests or wrongful indictments.
[Last updated in April of 2022 by the Wex Definitions Team]