Legal terms Week 9-14 (Part 2)

Question 1

An instrument, signed with the formalities necessary for a will, by which a person states the intention to refuse medical treatment and to release healthcare providers from all liability if the person becomes both terminally ill and unable to communicate such a refusal.

Answer 1

living will

Question 2

1. An act of lending; a grant of something for temporary use. 2. A thing lent for the borrower’s temporary use; esp. a sum of money lent at interest.

Answer 2

loan

Question 3

A statute providing for the maintenance of jurisdiction over nonresident defendants who have had contacts with the state where the statute is in effect. See minimum contacts.

Answer 3

long-arm statute

Question 4

A loss of the interests that one spouse is entitled to receive from the other, including companionship, cooperation, aid, affection, and sexual relations. X can be recoverable as damages in a personal-injury or wrongful-death action.

Answer 4

loss of consortium

Question 5

A judicial officer with strictly limited jurisdiction and authority, often on the local level and often restricted to criminal cases. Cf. justice of the peace.

Answer 5

magistrate

Question 6

In contract law, the rule that an acceptance becomes effective - and binds the offeror - once it is properly mailed.

Answer 6

mailbox rule

Question 7

See alimony.

Answer 7

maintenance

Question 8

An opinion joined in by more than half of the judges considering a given case, usu. on appeal.

Answer 8

majority opinion

Question 9

1. The intent, without justification or excuse, to commit a wrongful act. 2. Reckless disregard of the law or of a person’s legal rights.

Answer 9

malice

Question 10

The requisite mental state for common-law murder, encompassing any one of the following: (1) the intent to kill, (2) the intent to inflict grievous bodily harm, (3) extremely reckless indifference to the value of human life, or (4) the intent to commit a felony.

Answer 10

malice aforethought

Question 11

The tort of instituting criminal or civil proceedings for an improper purpose and without probable cause. The accused may sue for damages once the prosecution has been terminated in his or her favor.

Answer 11

malicious prosecution

Question 12

Negligence or incompetence on the part of a professional (such as a doctor or lawyer).

Answer 12

malpractice

Question 13

(Latin “we command”] A writ issued by a superior court compelling a lower court or a public body or officer to perform a mandatory or purely ministerial duty.

Answer 13

mandamus

Question 14

The unlawful killing of a human being without malice aforethought. See malice aforethought. Cf. murder.

Answer 14

manslaughter

Question 15

Property that is acquired from the time when a marriage begins until one spouse files for divorce (assuming a divorce decree actually results). See community property. maritime court. See admiralty.

Answer 15

marital property

Question 16

1. Having some logical connection with the consequential facts. 2. Of such a nature that knowledge of the item would affect a person’s decision-making process; significant; essential.

Answer 16

material

Question 17

1. A subject under consideration, esp. involving a dispute or litigation; a case. 2. Something that is to be tried or proved; an allegation forming the basis of a claim or defense.

Answer 17

matter

Question 18

A method of nonbinding dispute resolution involving a neutral third party who tries to help the disputing parties reach a mutually agreeable solution. Cf. arbitration.

Answer 18

mediation

Question 19

A statute requiring local authorities to notify communities of the whereabouts of convicted sex offenders who have been released from prison. All states in the United States have these laws, but only some require community notification (as by publishing offenders’ pictures or addresses in local newspapers); in others, people must call a state hotline or submit names or persons they suspect.

Answer 19

Megan’s law

Question 20

1. An informal written note or record outlining the terms of a transaction or contract. See statute of frauds. 2. A party’s written statement of its legal arguments presented to the court, usu. in the form of a brief.

Answer 20

memorandum

Question 21

[Law Latin “guilty mind”] The state of mind that the prosecution, to secure a conviction, must prove that a defendant had when committing a crime; criminal intent or recklessness. X is the second of two essential elements of every crime at common law, the other being actus reus. Cf. actus reus.

Answer 21

mens rea

Question 22

The absorption of one company (esp. a corporation) that ceases to exist into another that retains its own name and identity and acquires the assets and liabilities of the former.

Answer 22

merger

Question 23

The elements or grounds of a claim or defense; the substantive considerations to be taken into account in deciding a case, as opposed to extraneous or technical point, esp. of procedure.

Answer 23

merits

Question 24

A nonresident defendant’s forum-state connections, such as business activity or actions foreseeably leading to business activity, that are substantial enough to bring the defendant within the forum-state court’s personal jurisdiction without offending traditional notions of fair play and substantial justice.

Answer 24

minimum contacts

Question 25

A person who has not reached full legal age; a child or juvenile.

Answer 25

minor

Question 26

The requirement that a criminal suspect in police custody must be informed of certain constitutional rights before being interrogated. The suspect must be warned of the right to remain silent, the right to have an attorney present during questioning, and the right to have an attorney appointed if the suspect cannot afford one. If the person is not advised of these rights or does not validly waive them, any evidence obtained in the interrogation cannot be used against the defendant at trial. Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966).

Answer 26

Miranda rule

Question 27

A crime that is less serious than a felony and is usu. punishable by fine, penalty, forfeiture, or confinement in a place other than prison (such as a county jail). Cf. felony.

Answer 27

misdemeanor

Question 28

A false or misleading statement about something, usu. with the intent to deceive. See fraud.

Answer 28

misrepresentation

Question 29

A trial that ends without a determination on the merits because of prejudicial error or misconduct or because of a hung jury.

Answer 29

mistrial

Question 30

The principle requiring a plaintiff, after an injury or breach of contract, to use ordinary care to alleviate the affects of the injury or breach. If the defendant can show that the plaintiff failed to mitigate damages, the plaintiff’s recovery can be reduced.

Answer 30

mitigation-of-damages doctrine

Question 31

1. Control or advantage obtained by one supplier or producer over the commercial market within a given region. only one economic entity produces a particular product or provides a particular service. The term is now commonly applied also to situations that approach but do not strictly meet this definition.

Answer 31

monopoly

Question 32

Having no practical significance; hypothetical or academic.

Answer 32

moot

Question 33

Conduct that is contrary to justice, honesty, or good morals. In the area of legal ethics, offenses involving X - such as fraud or breach of trust - traditionally make a person unfit to practice law.

Answer 33

moral turpitude

Question 34

1. A conveyance of real estate or some real-estate interest, voidable upon the payment of money or the performance of some other condition. 2. A lien or charge on specific property (usu. real property) created by a document that purports to be an express transfer of title, with or without possession, but accompanied by a condition that the transfer will become void if money owed for the property is not paid in a timely fashion or the thing done to secure the transfer is not performed. 3. An instrument (such as a deed of trust or contract) specifying the terms of such a transaction.

Answer 34

mortgage

Question 35

A written or oral application requesting a court to make a specified ruling or order.

Answer 35

motion

Question 36

A request that the court enter judgment without a trial because there is no genuine issue of material fact in the case and because the movant is entitled to prevail as a matter of law.

Answer 36

motion for summary judgment

Question 37

A pretrial request that certain inadmissible evidence not be referred to or offered before the jury. Typically, a party makes this motion when it believes that mere mention of the evidence during trial would be highly prejudicial and could not be remedied by an instruction to disregard.

Answer 37

motion in limine

Question 38

A request that the court prohibit the introduction of illegally obtained evidence at a criminal trial. See exclusionary rule.

Answer 38

motion to suppress

Question 39

The unlawful killing of a human being with malice aforethought. The statutory elements of murder vary from state to state. Most penal codes divide the crime into two or more degrees of severity and punishment. See malice aforethought. Cf. manslaughter

Answer 39

murder

Question 40

An erroneous belief shared and relied upon by both parties to a contract. A court will often revise or void a contract based on a X about a material term. Cf. unilateral mistake.

Answer 40

mutual mistake

Question 41

A philosophical system of legal and moral principles purportedly deriving from a universalized conception of human nature or divine justice rather than from legislative or judicial action; moral law embodied in principles of right and wrong. Cf. positive law.

Answer 41

natural law

Question 42

1. In criminal law, a justification defense for a person who acts in an emergency that he or she did not create and who commits a harm that is less severe than the harm that would have occurred but for the person’s actions. For example, a mountain climber can assert X as a defense to theft if, while lost in a blizzard, he takes food and blankets from another’s cabin. 2. In tort law, a privilege that may relieve a person from liability if that person, having no alternatives, harms another’s property to protect life or health.

Answer 42

necessity

Question 43

1. The failure to exercise the standard of care that a reasonably prudent person would have exercised in the same situation; any conduct that falls below the legal standard established to protect others against unreasonable risk of harm, except for conduct that is intentionally, wantonly, or willfully disregardful of others’ rights. 2. A tort grounded in this failure, usu. expressed in terms of the following elements: duty, breach of duty, causation, and damage.

Answer 43

negligence

Question 44

A reasonable ground to suspect that a person has committed a particular crime or that a place contains specific items connected with a crime.

Answer 44

probable cause

Question 45

The judicial procedure by which a testamentary document is established to be a valid will; the proving of a will to the satisfaction of the court.

Answer 45

probate

Question 46

A court with the power to declare wills valid or invalid, to oversee the administration of estates, and in some states to appoint guardians and approve the adoption of minors.

Answer 46

probate court

Question 47

A court-imposed criminal sentence that, subject to stated conditions, releases a convicted person into the community instead of sending the person to prison.

Answer 47

probation

Question 48

Tending to prove or disprove.

Answer 48

probative

Question 49

[Latin pro bono publico “for the public good”] Of or relating to uncompensated legal services performed for the public good.

Answer 49

pro bono

Question 50

The rules that prescribe the steps for having a right or duty judicially enforced, as opposed to the substantive law that defines the specific rights or duties themselves. Cf. substantive law.

Answer 50

procedural law

Question 51

1. The regular and orderly progression of a lawsuit, including all acts and events between the time of commencement and the entry of judgment. 2. Any procedural means for seeking redress from a tribunal or agency. 3. The business conducted by a court or other official body; a hearing.

Answer 51

proceeding

Question 52

1. A manufacturer’s or seller’s tort liability for any damages or injuries suffered by a buyer, user, or bystander as a result of a defective product. 2. The legal theory by which liability is imposed on the manufacturer or seller of a defective product; the field of law dealing with this theory.

Answer 52

products liability

Question 53

To offer or tender (something, esp. evidence) for immediate acceptance.
promise.

Answer 53

proffer

Question 54

1. The manifestation of an intention to act or refrain from acting in a specified way, so made as to justify another in understanding that a commitment has been made; a person’s assurance that the person will or will not do something. A binding X - one that the law will enforce - is the essence of a contract. 2. The words in a promissory note expressing the maker’s intention to pay a debt. A mere written acknowledgment that a debt is due is insufficient to constitute a promise.

Answer 54

promise

Question 55

The principle that a promise made without consideration becomes binding if (1) the promisor intends, or should reasonably expect, the promise to induce reliance; (2) a party actually relies on the promise; and (3) nonenforcement of the promise will cause injury or injustice. See estoppel.

Answer 55

promissory estoppel

Question 56

1. The establishment or denial of an alleged fact by evidence; the persuasive effect of evidence in the mind of a fact-finder. 2. Evidence that determines the finding or judgment of a court.

Answer 56

proof

Question 57

1. The right to possess, use, and enjoy a determinate thing (either a tract of land or a chattel); the right of ownership. 2. Any external thing over which the rights of possession, use, and enjoyment are exercised.

Answer 57

property

Question 58

[Latin] 1. For oneself; on one’s own behalf. 2. A person who represents himself or herself in a court proceeding without the help of a lawyer.

Answer 58

pro se

Question 59

1. A criminal proceeding in which an accused person is tried. 2. The government attorneys who initiate and maintain a criminal action against an accused defendant. 3. The institution and carrying on of a civil action.

Answer 59

prosecution

Question 60

A lawyer who represents the government in criminal proceedings.

Answer 60

prosecutor

Question 61

1. A court order prohibiting or restricting a party from engaging in a legal procedure that unduly annoys or burdens the opposing party or a third-party witness.

Answer 61

protective order

Question 62

1. A cause that directly produces an event and without which the event would not have occurred. 2. A cause that is legally sufficient to result in liability.

Answer 62

proximate cause

Question 63

A person who has achieved fame or notoriety or who has voluntarily become involved in a public controversy. A X suing for defamation must prove that the defendant acted with actual malice.

Answer 63

public figure

Question 64

A monetary amount awarded in addition to actual damages when the defendant acted with recklessness, malice, or deceit. X, which are intended to punish and thus deter blameworthy conduct, are generally not recoverable for breach of contract. Also termed exemplary damages.

Answer 64

punitive damages

Question 65

[Latin “as much as he or she has deserved”) 1. The reasonable value of services; damages awarded in an amount considered reasonable to compensate a person who has rendered services in a quasi-contractual relationship. 2. A claim or cause of action for the reasonable value of services rendered. See quasi-contract.

Answer 65

quantum meruit

Question 66

To annul or make void: to terminate.

Answer 66

quash

Question 67

An obligation imposed by law because of the conduct of the parties, because of some special relationship between them, or because one of them would otherwise be unjustly enriched. A X is not actually a contract, but a remedy that allows the plaintiff to sue to recover a benefit conferred on the defendant. Also termed implied-in-law contract. See unjust enrichment.

Answer 67

quasi-contract

Question 68

[Latin “something for something”) A thing that is exchanged for another thing of more or less equal value; a substitute. Cf. consideration.

Answer 68

quid pro quo

Question 69

The use and possession of real property free from interference or dispossession by someone with superior title.

Answer 69

quiet enjoyment

Question 70

Temporary: not final in the determination of an action.

Answer 70

interlocutory

Question 71

A crime that is composed of some, but not all, of the elements of a more serious crime and that is necessarily committed in carrying out the greater crime.

Answer 71

lesser included offense