Basic Legal Vocabulary Flashcards
C
Capital Punishment (n.)
punishment by death, as ordered by a legal system.
Capital Punishment (n.) (e.g.)
Capital punishment is still possible in over thirty states in the United States.
Case (n.)
This is one of those terms that has several meanings. Technically, a case is a dispute between two or more parties. “Case” also refers to the opinion of a court and its ruling on a particular set of facts and legal issues. Thus, a casebook for a class is a collection of opinions. Case, judgment, ruling, opinion, and decision are often used interchangeably.
Case (n.) (e.g.)
-The O.J. Simpson case fascinated the entire country that summer.
-She won her case before the lower court, but lost on appeal. - - The case will probably go before the Supreme Court next year.
In a democracy, judges are supposed to decide cases strictly on their merits.
case law (n.) caselaw or case-law UNCOUNTABLE!
Law that has been established by following legal decisions made by judges in earlier cases. — see landmark
Case law (n.) (e.g.)
Case law has been instrumental in the creation of European Union law.
Cause of action (n.)
The charges (or “counts”) that make up the case or lawsuit. / an acceptable reason in law for taking legal action against someone:
cause of action (n.) (e.g.)
The points a plaintiff must prove to win a given type of case are called the “elements” of that cause of action. (For the cause of action of negligence, for example, the elements are existence of a duty, breach of that duty, causation by that breach, and damages suffered by the plaintiff.)
charge (v.)
to formally accuse someone of doing something illegal — see accuse
charge (v.) (e.g.)
He was charged with murder. (charged with murdering his wife)
charge (n.)
formal accusation of a crime
charge (n.) (e.g.)
The charges against him were reduced because he cooperated with the prosecution. He has been arrested on a charge of burglary.
civil adj. (law)
Civil law is the law that applies to private rights as opposed to the law that applies to criminal matters.
civil adj. (law) (e.g.)
The United States had preserved the right to a jury in civil cases.
Civil (law) (adj.) 2nd explanation
- Civil law may also refer to the body of law developed from Roman law and used in places such as Louisiana, continental Europe, and in many other countries outside of the English-speaking world — see common law
Civil (law) (adj.) 2nd explanation (e.g.)
France is usually described as a country of civil law as opposed to a country of common law.
claim (v.)
If you claim something, you try to get it because you think you have a right to it.
claim (v.) (e.g.)
She intends to claim for damages against the doctor who cut off the wrong leg.
claim (n.)
a written request asking an organization to pay you an amount of money that you believe they owe you
claim (n.) (e.g.)
She made a claim for damages, but the court found that she, and not the other driver, had been negligent.
A Texas jury found Andrea Yates guilty of capital murder Tuesday, rejecting her claim that she was insane when she drowned her five children in a bathtub last summer.
claimant UK (n.)
a person who asks for something which they believe belongs to them or which they have a right to (see plaintiff)
claimaint UK (n.) (e.g.)
The claimants allege that the defendant sold them a dangerous product.
commit (v.)
If someone commits a crime, they do something illegal.
commit (v.) (e.g.)
He was sent to prison for committing murder, but he was later proven innocent through DNA evidence
common law 1st meaning (n.)
legal rules that come from court decisions and not from statutes or constitutions.
common law (n.) (e.g.)
Most rules in contract law are common law rules.
common law (adj.)
having to do with legal systems such as England and Wales, or countries which evolved from that system (for example, Ireland, the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand)
