compellable

Legally must testify

Compellable describes someone or something that can be legally forced to comply.

The term appears most often in legal contexts regarding witnesses: a compellable witness can be required by law to testify, while a non-compellable witness—such as a spouse in some jurisdictions—cannot be forced to give evidence.

The court ruled that she was a compellable witness in the fraud case.

legal

subpoena

Writ requiring testimony

summonsFormal court notification
testimonySworn statement as evidence
witnessOne who attests

deposition · jurisdiction · court order · affidavit · hearing · trial · evidence · cross-examination · proceedings · judicial

obligatory

mandatory

Required by rule

bindingLegally or morally required
obligatoryRequired by rule
requisiteSomething absolutely needed

imperative · inescapable · unavoidable · coercive · constraining · peremptory · non-negotiable · irresistible

compliance

obedience

Compliance with authority

adherenceFaithful following of something
submissionYielding to another's will
acquiescenceUnresisting acceptance

yielding · cooperation · consent · assent · capitulation · amenability · tractability · conformity · receptivity · docility

Opposites

legal obligation to comply

compellableexempt

Not subject to

privileged · immune · protected · incompetent · excused

susceptibility to coercion or force

compellableimmune

Protected from harm

exempt · protected · resistant · voluntary · autonomous

Family

impulse, compel, compelling, compulsory, compelled, compulsion, compulsive, compels, impulsion

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