Exam 1 Flashcards
Plaintiff
The party who begins a lawsuit by filing a complaint in the appropriate court.
Defendant
The party against whom a lawsuit is brought and from whom recovery is sought.
Stare decisions
The practice of relying on previous decisions in which similar disputes arose.
Common Law
The body of recorded decisions that courts refer to and rely upon when making later legal decisions.
Precedent
A model case that a court can follow when facing a similar situation.
Case Law
the effects of court decisions that involve the same or similar facts.
Statutory Law
The field of law involving statues which are laws passed by congress or by state legislatures.
Ordinance
A law that is passed by a local government such as a city council.
Administrative Law
The body of rules, regulations and decisions created by administrative agencies.
Uniform Commercial Code (UCC)
a set of laws that govern various commercial transactions and that are designed to bring uniformity to the law of the states.
Moral Law
the “law” concerned with the unenforceable obligations that people have to one another
Jurisdicton
the authority of a court, as granted by a constitution or legislative act, to hear and decide case.
Constitutional law
is the study of the federal constitution, its interpretation by the federal courts, and its relationships to existing laws.
Civil Law
is the study of the and obligations of individuals and includes the law of property, the law of contracts, and the law of torts.
Criminal Law
is concerned with acts against society (criminal acts) and the regulations of criminal activity.
Administrative Law
is concerned with the conduct of governmental administrative agencies and their regulations. Examples are tax law and laws dealing with taxation and trade.
international law
is concerned with the conduct of nations and there relations with of nations.
Jurisdiction
Authority or power of a court to hear cases, as granted by a constitution or legislative act.
- a court may be limited in its power to certain cases or certain geographical areas.
- a court has original jurisdiction
Appellate Jurisdiction
The power to review the decisions of another court.
Special Jurisdiction
Courts that are limited in their power to hear only certain kinds of cases.
Sarbanes-Oxley
A federal statute that placed an onus on upper management to monitor closely the financial dealings and disclosures of their firms and that established a board to oversee accounting practices in the United States.
Morals*
Beliefs about what is fair and what is right or wrong
Ethnics*
the standards and principles for the behavior of individuals within a society.
Values*
Beliefs of standards considered worthwhile, and from which a society derives its moral rules.
Culture
The set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and practices that characterize a social, racial, religious, or corporate group.
Subculture
An ethnic, economic, regional, religious, or social group with attitudes or behaviors that distinguish it from others within a larger culture.
Code of ethnics
A set of rules that a company or other group adopts to express principals of ethnical behavior that are expected of it personnel.
Stakeholders
People or groups who may be affected by a firm’s actions or decisions.
Whistleblower
an employee who exposes unethical or illegal conduct within the federal government or one of its contractors
Statutes
that are designed to protect the public at large. the law enforcement authorities of federal, state, and local governments enforce specific laws.
Crimes
An offense against the public at large punishable by the official governing body of nation or state.
tort
A private wrong that injures another person’s physical well-being, property, or reputation.
Treason
the laving of war against the United States, or the giving of aid and comfort to the nation’s enemies.
Felony
A crime punishable by death or imprisonment in a federal or state prison for a term exceeding one year.