excludente

Excludente is an adjective used in Portuguese (and in its cognates in Italian escludente and Spanish excludente) meaning that which excludes or has the effect of excluding. The term derives from Latin excludere, formed by ex- “out” and cludere “to close.” In Portuguese, excludente can also function as a noun to refer to a factor, rule, or circumstance that removes illegality or liability.

In criminal law, the expression excludentes de ilicitude designates circumstances that negate the illicit nature of an act. Common excludentes include legítima defesa (justifiable defense), estado de necessidade (state of necessity), estrito cumprimento do dever legal (strict fulfillment of the legal duty), and exercício regular de direito (acting within one’s legal rights). These factors can suppress the attribution of crime or of guilt. The concept can also appear as excludentes de responsabilidade in civil contexts, depending on jurisdiction.

Beyond law, excludente is used in policy making, administration, and statistics to denote excluding criteria. For example, critérios excludentes refer to conditions that disqualify or exclude certain candidates or items from a cohort or analysis. In everyday language, the term signals that a rule or condition yields exclusion rather than inclusion.

In sum, excludente denotes something that excludes, a term widely used in legal phrasing and administrative contexts, with cognates in related Romance languages.