Instituted activity under the legal regime of criminal procedure directed at someone suspect of an offence under criminal law, in order to assess his culpability.

plural of prosecuting attorney

(law) In United States patent law, the circumstance under which a person who has filed a patent application, and then made amendments to the application to accommodate the patent law and secure issuance of the patent, is prevented from bringing a cause of action for infringement of the patent where the allegedly infringing acts falling within the matter disclaimed by the amendment.