Legal Terms Chapter 1 - Court Systems and Jurisdiction Flashcards
Action
Lawsuit or court proceeding.
Admiralty
Pertaining to the sea.
Alternative dispute resolution
Procedures for settling disputes by means other than litigation.
Answer
The main pleading filed by the defendant in a lawsuit in response to the plaintiff’s complaint.
Appeal
The request to a higher court to review the decision of a lower court.
Appellate courts
Courts that review the decisions of lower courts.
Appellate jurisdiction
The power to hear a case when it is appealed.
Arbitration
A method of settling disputes in which a neutral third party makes a decision after hearing the arguments on both sides.
Arbitrator
A neutral third party in an arbitration session who listens to both sides and makes a decision with regard to the dispute.
Arbitrator’s award
An arbitrator’s final written decision in binding arbitration.
Arraignment
The act of calling a prisoner before the court to answer an indictment or information.
Arrest
To deprive a person of his or her liberty.
Article
In a statutory framework, a discreet collection of laws on the same general topic.
Bankruptcy
A legal process which aims to give debtors who are overwhelmed with debt a “fresh start” and to provide a fair way of distributing a debtor’s assets among all creditors.
Binding arbitration
Arbitration in which the decision of the arbitrator is final and must be followed.
Counterclaim
A claim that the defendant has against the plaintiff.
Court
A governmental unit organized to administer justice.
Cross-claim
A claim brought by one defendant against another defendant in the same suit.
Cross-complaint
A pleading used in California by a defendant to file a claim against another defendant, a third party, and the plaintiff in the same action.
Discovery
Methods that allow each party in litigation to obtain information from the other party and from witnesses about a case before going to court.
Demurrer
The pleading used by the defendant to attack the plaintiff’s complaint by raising a point of law, such as the failure of a complaint to state a cause of action.
Jurors
Members of a jury.
Jury
A group of people selected according to law and sworn to determine the facts of the case.
Indictment
A formal, written charge of a crime made by a grand jury.
Interrogatories
A form of discovery in a civil action in which parties are given a series of written questions to be answered under oath.
Legal ethics
The do’s and don’ts applied in the legal profession and formalized into ethics rules.
Litigation
A suit at law.
Paralegal
A nonlawyer employee trained or educated to do substantive legal work under supervision of employing attorney.
Pleadings
The written statements of claims and defenses used by the parties in a lawsuit.
Preliminary Hearing
A hearing before a judge to determine whether there is sufficient evidence to believe that the person has committed a crime.
Process
The means of compelling a defendant in an action to appear in court.
Venue
The place where the trial is held.
U.S. Constitution
The first governing document in world history that creates a representative democracy.
U.S. Supreme Court
The highest court in the federal judicial system, created by Article III of the U.S. Constitution.
Federal question
A matter that involves the U.S. Constitution, acts of Congress, or treaties.
Diversity of citizenship
A phrase used in connection with the jurisdiction of federal courts to describe cases between citizens of different states or citizens of the U.S. and those of foreign governments/countries.
Federal district courts
The U.S. District Courts which hear most federal cases before an appeal.
Principal
One who authorizes another to act on one’s behalf.
Common law
The case law used in England and the American colonies before the American revolution.
Code
A systematic collection of statutes, administrative regulations, and other laws.
Circuits
Name given to the division of the federal court system. There are 13 circuits in the federal system.
Justices
The title given to the highest appellate court judges.
Writ of certiorari
An order from a higher court to a lower court to deliver its records to the higher court for review.
Cert. den.
What is written on a court record when a writ of certiorari is denied.
Probate
To prove and have allowed by the court, usually a will.
Courts of appeal
A court that reviews the decision of a lower court.
Original jurisdiction
The authority to hear a case when it first goes to court.
Exclusive jurisdiction
The power of one court only to hear a particular case to the exclusion of all other courts.
Concurrent jurisdiction
The power of two or more courts to decide a particular case.
Forum non conveniens
The right of a court to refuse to hear a case if it believes that justice would be better served if the trial were held in a different court.
Verdict
The decision of a jury.
In personam action
A lawsuit in which the court has jurisdiction over the person.
In rem action
A lawsuit that is directed against property rather than against a particular person.
Real property
The ground and anything permanently attached to it, including land, buildings, growing trees, and airspace.
Local action
A lawsuit that can only occur in one place.
Res
The property.
Defendant
A person against whom legal action is brought.
Quasi in rem
A lawsuit in which the court has jurisdiction over the defendant’s property, but not over the defendant’s person.
Plaintiff
A person who brings a legal action against another.
Complaint
A formal document containing a short and plain statement of the claim, indicating that the plaintiff is entitled to relief and containing a demand for the relief sought. Called declaration at common law.
Service of process
The delivering of summonses or other legal documents to the people who are required to receive them.
Long-arm statutes
Statutes that allow one state to reach out and obtain personal jurisdiction over a person in another state.
Plenary jurisdiction
Complete jurisdiction over both of the parties and the subject matter of the lawsuit.
Transitory action
A lawsuit that may be brought in more than one place as long as the court in which it is heard has proper jurisdiction.
Motion
A written or oral request made to a court for a certain action to be taken.
Conviction
To be found guilty of a crime.
Mediation
An informal dispute resolution process in which a neutral, third person listens to both sides’ claims and makes suggestions for reaching a solution without having to go to trial.
Mini-trials
Informal trials run by private organizations established for the purpose of settling disputes out of court.
Negotiation
A two-party process in which each side attempts to conclude a dispute by bargaining with the other until one side agrees to the other’s offer or settlement.
Third party
In agency law, one who deals with an agent in making a contract with the agent’s principal.
Offer
A proposal to enter into a contract made by an offerer.
Contract
Any agreement that is enforceable in a court of law.
Conciliator
The neutral third person who does the listening in a mediation; also called a mediator.
Caucus
A private session with a mediator in which the mediator learns what the interests are behind each side’s demands.
Nonbinding arbitration
Arbitration in which the arbitrator’s decision is simply a recommendation and need not be complied with.
Mandatory arbitration
Arbitration that is required by agreement, or by law; also called compulsory arbitration.
Change of venue
The removal of a suit begun in one county or district and the replacement of it to another county or district for trial.
Statute
A written law passed by a legislative body.
