mal•fea•sance [măl-fē′zəns]
- n. Misconduct or wrongdoing, especially by a public official.
- n. Evil-doing; the doing of that which ought not to be done; wrongful conduct, especially official misconduct; violation of a public trust or obligation; specifically, the doing of an act which is positively unlawful or wrongful, in contradistinction to misfeasance, or the doing of a lawful act in a wrongful manner. The term is often inappropriately used instead of misfeasance.
- n. The doing of an act which a person ought not to do; evil conduct; an illegal deed.