ex post facto law
ex post facto law. A law that impermissibly applies retroactively, esp. in a way that negatively affects a person’s rights, as by criminalizing an action that was legal when it was committed. • Ex post facto criminal laws are prohibited by the U.S. Constitution. But retrospective civil laws may be allowed. See RETROACTIVE LAW. [Cases: Constitutional Law 197–203. C.J.S. Constitutional Law §§ 409–428.]