Vocabulary words and phrases used in the Legal Profession

Here are some vocabulary words and phrases used by Legal Professionals:

acquittal

A finding of innocence; the legal and formal certification of the innocence of a person charged with a crime.

ad hoc

Only applicable to the specific case.

adjudication

Giving or pronouncing a judgment or decree; also the judgment given.

adversary system

A judicial system in which opposing parties present their arguments in a case before a trial court; the person who best presents the case wins; the adversary system is used in the United States.

affirmative defense

A defense affirmatively asserted by the defendant in response to a civil complaint or criminal charge that, if proved true, exonerates the defendant from civil liability or criminal guilt even if the defendant committed the act alleged in the complaint or charge

allegation

An assertion made by a party in a court proceeding that must be proved or supported with evidence during the trial.

alleged

Identified but not proven.

amicus brief

People besides the people directly involved in a case, with an interest in the outcome, may file an amicus brief—a legal paper supporting one position or another—with the court.

appeal

A request by the losing party in a lawsuit that the judgment be reviewed by a higher court because of error or injustice

arraignment

The court appearance of a person accused of criminal behavior to hear the charges against him or her and to enter a plea of guilty or not guilty.

bail

Security, usually in the form of money or property, exchanged for the release of a jailed person to insure his or her appearance in court.

breach of contract

Failure to observe the terms of a written offer or agreement.

brief

A written document prepared by an attorney to file in court, usually setting forth both facts and law in support of his or her case.

burden of proof

In the law of evidence, the necessity or duty of affirmatively proving a fact or facts in dispute. This burden may shift from the plaintiff to the defendant during a trial.

burglary/burglary with intent

Trespassing with the intent of committing a crime (including theft, bodily harm, criminal damage, rape).

charge to the jury

A judge’s instructions to the jury regarding the laws pertaining to a case.

circumstantial evidence

Evidence that may strongly suggest something but does not provide direct proof

claim

The assertion of a right to money or property; an assertion that the suing party has been injured by the action of another.

class-action suit

A lawsuit filed on behalf of many persons with a common legal interest at stake.

clear and convincing evidence

A level of proof requiring the truth of the facts asserted to be highly probable.

closing argument

A summary of evidence presented to the jury by attorneys involved in a trial.

commute a sentence

The judge’s ability to reduce the recommended sentence of a jury.

compensatory damages

A form of money payment awarded at the end of a case to pay a person for the actual losses he or she has already suffered or will suffer because of wrong done to him or her.

complainant

The individual who initiates a lawsuit; synonymous with plaintiff.

complaint (civil)

The first or initiatory pleading on the part of the plaintiff in a civil action; statements by the plaintiff making claims against the defendant.

complaint (criminal)

Statements charging an individual with a criminal violation.

concurrent sentences

Sentences for multiple crimes that are served at the same time, or concurrently

contempt of court

Disregard or disobedience for the authority of a court of law.

corporation

A legal entity established for the primary purpose of maximizing profit for its shareholders, the corporation’s owners.

copyright

The right belonging to the creator of an intellectual property to control the copying, distributing, performing, displaying and adapting of the work.

counterclaim

A claim filed by a defendant against the plaintiff in a civil action.

cross-examination

The questioning of a witness in a trial, or in the taking of a deposition, by the party opposed to the one who produced the witness

decree

A decision or order of the court. A final decree is one that finally disposes of the litigation; an interlocutory decrees is a provisional or preliminary decree that is not final.

defendant

A person who is sued or accused by another in a law court; the person against whom a civil lawsuit is started, or a crime if charged

deposition

Sworn testimony of a witness, taken under oath and outside the courtroom

direct evidence

Evidence intended to conclusively establish a specific fact.

direct examination

Questioning of a witness by counsel who introduced the witness

dissent

A term commonly used to denote the disagreement of one or more judges of a court with the decision of the majority

due process

This basic legal principle, which appears in the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments, requires the government to be fair in its dealings with people. The Amendments forbid federal state, and local governments from depriving people of “life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.” A constitutional provision guaranteeing an accused person a fair and impartial trial.

en banc

All judges of a given court.

evidence

Any legally presented proof by witnesses, records, documents, etc. during the course of a trial.

ex parte meeting

Meeting with the members of only one party to a legal dispute and no representatives from the opposing party.

exhibit

Papers, documents or other material objects received by the court and offered as evidence during a trial or hearing.

expunge

Destroy or erase a person’s criminal record. Expungement is also called erasure, destruction, sealing, setting aside, expunction or purging.

extortion

Obtaining something from a person through intimidation, force or otherwise unfair or unlawful methods.

fiduciary duty

A fiduciary is someone who has agreed to act in the best interests of another, often through the management of another’s money or property. Corporate officers and members of the corporation’s board of directors, for example, act as fiduciaries to the corporation’s shareholders. Duties of a fiduciary include duties of trust, confidence, and fair dealing.

first-degree murder

Premeditated murder committed deliberately with malice aforethought, with extreme cruelty, or in connection with another crime or attempted crime, and punishable by death or life imprisonment.

gag orders

Limits judges impose on attorney comments.

garnished wages

Money legally withheld from a paycheck by an employer as payment of the employee’s debt to another party.

habeas corpus petition

In federal court, a means by which a state prisoner may challenge the constitutionality of his or her conviction and imprisonment

hung jury

A jury unable to reach consensus or verdict; with no verdict entered, the trial has not reached its normal conclusion, and the trial judge may declare a mistrial, in which the prohibition against double jeopardy does not apply and the state may choose to commence a new trial against the defendant.

indictment

A grand jury’s written accusation charging that a person or business allegedly committed a crime.

insider trading

At its most neutral, this term can simply describe trading in a corporation’s shares by individuals who are “inside” a corporation—for example, its officers, directors, and employees. If such insiders trade in the corporation’s shares on the basis of information that has not been made publicly available to other, “outside” investors, insider trading runs afoul of the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission and may be punished with both civil and criminal sanctions.

intellectual property

Property generated through the creation of discoveries, inventions, and works of art.

judgment

A formal order of the court.