Legal Terms Chapter 3 - Civil Trial Procedure Flashcards
Civil action
A noncriminal lawsuit.
Litigants
Parties to a lawsuit.
Class action
A lawsuit brought, with the court’s permission, by one or more persons on behalf of a large group of people who have the same interest in the matter.
Ripeness doctrine
A principle under which the court will not hear a case unless there is an actual, present controversy for the court to decide.
Justiciable
Appropriate for court assessment.
Rules of civil procedure
Regulations that govern the proceedings in civil cases.
Legal issues
Questions of law to be decided by the court in a lawsuit.
Pro se
A plaintiff representing himself in litigation without an attorney’s help.
Consideration
An exchange of promises or benefits and detriments or obligations by the parties to an agreement.
Standing to sue
The condition that exists when a party has a tangible, legally protected interest at stake in a lawsuit.
Statute of limitations
A time limit, set by statute, within which suit must be commenced after the cause of action accrues.
Claim
Right to payment.
Cause of action
The grounds on which a suit is maintained.
Gravamen
The essential basis or gist of a complaint filed in a lawsuit.
Averments
Claims that the party making them expects to prove. Also called allegations.
Aver
To assert positively. Also called to allege.
Clause
A distinct part of a contract or a constitutional section.
Ad damnum
The clause in the complaint stating the damages claimed by the plaintiff.
Petition
A written application for a court order.
Docket
A record of cases that are filed with the court.
Docket number
A number assigned to each case by the clerk of court.
Trial docket
The calendar of cases that are ready for trial. Also called trial list.
Summons
A formal notice to the defendant that a lawsuit has begun and that the defendant must file an answer within the number of days set by state law or lose the case by default.
Process server
A person who carries out the service of process.
Personal delivery
The personal delivery of a copy of the summons and complaint to the defendant
Constructive service
A type of service in which the summons and complaint are left at the defendant’s last and usual place of abode.
Substituted service
A type of service in which the summons and complaint are delivered to the defendant’s agent, mailed, or published in the newspaper.
Agent
A person authorized to act on behalf of another and subject to the other’s control. Also called a surrogate.
Corporation
A legal entity created under state law with the power to conduct its affairs as though it were a natural person. Its legal existence is separate from the life of its owners.
Doe defendants
The device used to refer to defendants whose names are unknown.
Trespass
The intentional and unauthorized entry by a person onto the land of another.
Default judgment
A court decision entered against a party who has failed to respond to or defend a lawsuit.
Preponderance of evidence
Evidence having the greater weight.
Restitution
Restoration made to an injured person to his or her original position prior to a loss.
Attachment
The act of taking or seizing property by the use of a writ, summons, or other judicial order bringing it into the custody of the court so that it may be applied toward the defendant’s debt if the plaintiff wins the case.
Affidavit
A written statement sworn to under oath before a notary public as being true to the affiant’s own knowledge, information, and belief.
Notary public
A person authorized by law to administer oaths, attest to and certify documents, take acknowledgements, and other official acts.
Affiant
A person who signs an affidavit. Also called the deponent.
Ex Parte hearing
A hearing that is attended by one party only.
Writ
A written order of the court, returnable to the same, commanding the performance or nonperformance of an act.
Performance
The discharging of a contract by doing that which one agreed to do under the terms of the contract.
Writ of attachment
A written order to the sheriff, commanding the sheriff to attach the real or personal property of the defendant.
Personal Property
Anything that is the subject of ownership other than real property.
Lis pendens
Pending suit.
Lien
A claim or charge on property for the payment of a debt. Also called an encumbrance.
Trustee process
A procedure for attaching the defendant’s property that is in the hands of a third person. Called a garnishment in some states.
Trustee
A person who holds legal title to property in trust of another.
Writ of garnishment
A written order of a court ordering a garnishee not to give out money or property held for another, but to appear and answer the plaintiff’s suit.
Garnishee
A third party who holds money or property of a debtor that is subject to a garnishment action.
Goods
Things that are movable.
Malicious prosecution
Prosecution begun in malice without probable cause.
Slander
Defamation that is communicated by the spoken word.
Libel
Defamation that can be communicated by writing, drawing, photograph, television program, or other means that can be considered “published.”
Assault
The intentional creation of a reasonable apprehension of an imminent battery.
Battery
Intentional contact with another person without that person’s permission and without justification.
Costs
Expenses associated with a legal matter, such as filing fees.
Robbery
The wrongful carrying away of the personal property of another, from the other’s person or personal custody, against his or her will, by threat of force or violence.
Murder
The unlawful killing of a human being by another with malice aforethought.
Writ of execution
A written order to the sheriff, commanding the sheriff to enforce a judgment of the court.
Conciliation
An informal process in which a neutral third person listens to both sides and makes suggestions for reaching a solution; also called mediation.