18 U.S.C. § 1515 — Definitions for certain provisions; general provision

(a) Definitions for sections 1512 and 1513 and this section. (1) “official proceeding” means (A) a proceeding before a United States judge or court, United States magistrate judge, bankruptcy judge, Tax Court judge or special trial judge, Court of Federal Claims judge, or federal grand jury; (B) a congressional proceeding; (C) a proceeding before a federal agency^* authorized by law; or (D) an insurance-business proceeding affecting interstate commerce before an insurance regulator, agency, or its authorized examiner concerning a person in that business. (2) “physical force” means physical action against another person and includes confinement. (3) “misleading conduct” means (A) knowingly making a false statement; (B) intentionally leaving information out of a statement so part of it becomes misleading, or intentionally hiding a material fact and thereby creating a false impression; (C) intending to mislead and knowingly submitting or inviting reliance on a false, forged, altered, or otherwise inauthentic writing or recording; (D) intending to mislead and knowingly submitting or inviting reliance on a materially misleading sample, specimen, map, photograph, boundary mark, or other object; or (E) knowingly using a trick, scheme, or device with intent to mislead. (4) “law enforcement officer” means a federal officer or employee, or a person authorized to act for the Federal Government or serving it as an adviser or consultant, who (A) is legally authorized to prevent, detect, investigate, or prosecute an offense, or (B) serves as a probation or pretrial-services officer under this title. (5) “bodily injury” means (A) a cut, abrasion, bruise, burn, or disfigurement; (B) physical pain; (C) illness; (D) impaired function of a body part, organ, or mental faculty; or (E) any other injury to the body, however temporary. (6) “corruptly persuades” does not include conduct that would be misleading conduct except for the lack of the required state of mind.
(b) For section 1505, “corruptly” means acting with an improper purpose, personally or by influencing someone else. It includes making a false or misleading statement, or withholding, hiding, changing, or destroying a document or other information.
(c) This chapter does not prohibit or punish providing lawful, genuine legal-representation services connected with, or expected to lead to, an official proceeding.