Legal Dictionary
Main Entry:
un·clean handsFunction:
noun plural : an equitable doctrine: a complainant will be denied relief if he or she has engaged in misconduct (as acting in bad faith) directly relating to the complaint;
also : the condition of having engaged in such misconduct and being barred from equitable relief
unclean hands —Royal Sch. Labs., Incorporated v. Town of Watertown, 358 Federal Reporter, Second Series 813 (1966)>
NOTE: Unclean hands on the part of the plaintiff is often pleaded as an affirmative defense by the defendant.
