Medical jurisprudence: The branch of the law that deals with the application of law to medicine or, conversely, the application of medical science to legal problems. Medical jurisprudence may be involved in cases concerning genetic relationships (eg, paternity testing) or injury or death resulting from violence. An autopsy may be done to help determine the agent of death (eg, a gun shot, poison) and how long the person has been dead.. Forensic medicine is also important in cases involving rape. Modern techniques use such specimens as semen, blood, and hair to identify the body of a victim and to compare the DNA of the criminal to that of the defendant through DNA fingerprinting.
