Vocab Flashcards
Acceptance
The offeree’s notification to the offer or that he agrees to be bound by the terms and conditions of the offer
Accommodation
Adjustment or settlement
Adjudicate
Have a court make a decision or decide a dispute
Affirmed
To affirm a judgement, decree, or order is to declare that it is valid and right, and must stand as rendered by the lower court
Affidavit
A written statement or declaration of facts sworn to be the maker, taken before a person officially permitted by law to administer oaths
Amicus Curiae
Friend of the court; a third party who presents a brief to a court on behalf of one of the parties in a case
Annotations
Statutory: brief summaries of the law and facts or cases interpreting statutes passed by congress or state legislatures that are included in codes
Textual: expository essays of varying length on significant legal topics chosen from selected cases published with the essays
Appeal
A request from the losing party in a case that a higher court review the decision. Acceptance of the request and issuance by a writ of appeal is mandatory for the higher court
Appellant
The party who appeals a decision from a lower court to a higher court
Appellate court
Court of appellate jurisdiction
Arraignment
The appearance of a defendant to a criminal charge before a judge for the purpose of pleading guilty or not guilty to the indictment
Boba fide
Real, true, and actual
Brief
In American law practice, a written statement prepared by the counsel arguing a case in court. It contains a summary of the facts of the case, the pertinent laws, and argument of how the law applies to the facts supporting the counsels position
Burden of proof
The necessity or duty of positively proving a fact or facts in a dispute on an issue raised between parties
Collusion
A secret agreement between two or more persons for a fraudulent, unlawful or deceitful purpose. This occurs in professional sports when teams secretly agree not to hire one another’s players, secretly agree not to spend more than a certain amount of money on players, and/or secretly share info that they are forbidden to share under the terms of a collective bargaining agreement
Cross-examination
The examination of a witness in a trial or hearing, or in taking a deposition, by the party opposed to the one who produced the witness
Damages
Monetary compensation awarded by a court for an injury caused by the act of another
Damages may be actual or compensatory (equal to the amount of loss shown), exemplary or punitive (in excess of the actual loss and awarded to punish the person for the malicious conduct that caused the injury), or nominal (less than the actual loss)
Defendant
The party against whom legal action is taken; particularly, a person accused or convicted of a criminal offense
Deposition
The testimony of a witness, taken out of court before a court reporter and under oath
Disclosure
An argument that certain information possessed by associations, or meetings held by organizations, should be a matter of public record, and therefore, open to the public. The general meaning of disclosure is “to reveal facts”
Discovery
A method by which opposing parties may obtain information from each other, to prepare for trial and to narrow the issues to be presented at trial
Equal rights amendment
A proposed amendment to the U.S. constitution to guarantee equal rights to women that was not ratified in the early 1980’s but that certain states have adopted