John Doe Law and Legal Definition
John Doe is a fictitious name used in a legal proceeding to designate a person whose identity is unknown, to protect a person's known identity, or to indicate that a true defendant does not exist. The name is also used to refer to a male corpse or hospital patient whose identity is unknown.
The female equivalent of John is Jane Doe. In U.S, the names John Doe, Jane Doe, Richard Roe, Jane Roe, and Peter Poe is used to identify a party to a lawsuit whose true name is either unknown or purposely shielded.
