infringed

Infringed is the past tense of infringe, meaning to violate or breach a law, rule, contract, or the rights of another. The term is used in both everyday language and formal legal contexts to describe actions that exceed permitted boundaries or violate protections set by law or agreement.

In legal contexts, infringement most often refers to unauthorized use of protected works or assets, such as copyright infringement, patent infringement, or trademark infringement. Infringement cases evaluate whether the alleged act falls within the scope of the protection and whether there is sufficient similarity or likelihood of confusion. Remedies typically include injunctions to stop the activity and damages to compensate the rights holder, and penalties may include statutory damages in some jurisdictions.

Different forms include direct infringement (the unlicensed use itself), contributory infringement (assistance that facilitates infringement), induced infringement (encouraging others to infringe), and vicarious infringement (control or benefit from the infringing act).

Etymology and usage: infringe derives from Latin infringere "to break in," from in- "on" + frangere "to break." Usage notes: in American English, "infringed upon" or "infringed on" are common; "infringement" is the standard noun form. The term is often contrasted with compliance or authorization in discussions of rights protection and legal accountability.