Words & Phrases of Foreign Origins Flashcards
Autrefois Convict
Formerly convicted
Autrefois convict is a plea made by a defendant in a case when s/he is indicted for a crime or misdemeanor. By this plea, a defendant can claim that s/he was charged with the same crime under substantially the same facts.
Lis Pendens
a pending legal action, or a formal notice of one.
Faux pas
Faux (FALSE) pas (step)
an embarrassing or tactless act or remark in a social situation.
“‘I was suddenly sick in the back of their car’—it was years before he could confess his faux pas to them”
Punctum Temporis
Lat. A point of time;
an indivisible period of time;
the shortest space of time;
an instant Calvin
Pari passu
side by side; at the same rate or on an equal footing.
“early opera developed pari passu with the solo song”
Pari passu is a Latin phrase that literally means “with an equal step” or “on equal footing”. It is sometimes translated as “ranking equally”, “hand-in-hand”, “with equal force”, or “moving together”, and by extension, “fairly”, “without partiality”.
Jus Gentium
international law.
or
Law among Nations
Bona Vacantia
Goods that have no owner
a legal concept associated with property that has no owner.
Sine Die
(with reference to business or proceedings that have been adjourned) with no appointed date for resumption.
“The case was adjourned sine die”
Adjournment sine die means “without assigning a day for a further meeting or hearing”. To adjourn an assembly sine die is to adjourn it for an indefinite period.
Per incuriam
Mistaken Decision
through or characterized by a lack of due regard to the law or the facts.
“the decision was made per incuriam”
Per incuriam, literally translated as “through lack of care” is a device within the common law system of judicial precedent. A finding of per incuriam means that a previous court judgment has failed to pay attention to relevant statutory provision or precedents.
Lex Loci
Law of a place
the law of the country in which a transaction is performed, a tort is committed, or property is situated.
Malus animus
evil intention.
malus (bad) animus (heart)
It means the intention to do harm or the intention to commit an illegal or immoral act.
Animus Posssidendi
animus (heart) possidendi (possessing)
intention to possess
Caveat Venditor
Caveat (let) Venditor(seller)
Let the seller beware
Caveat emptor
Caveat emptor (buyer)
let the buyer beware
Turpis arbiter
Turpis (ugly, corrupt) arbiter (judge)
corrupt judge
In pari delicto
“in equal fault”,
a legal term used to refer to two persons or entities who are equally at fault, whether the malfeasance (wrongdoing, offense) in question is a crime or tort
Amicus curiae
Amicus (friend) curiae (court)
a friend of the court
DescriptionAn amicus curiae is someone who is not a party to a case and may or may not have been solicited by a party and who assists a court by offering information, expertise, or insight that has a bearing on the issues in the case; and is typically presented in the form of a brief
Ab initio
Ab (FROM) initio (BEGINING)
“from the beginning”
obiter dicta
obiter (incidentally) dicta (called)
an incidental remark.+
a judge’s expression of opinion uttered in court or in a written judgment, but not essential to the decision and therefore not legally binding as a precedent.
audi alteram partem
audi (hear) alteram (other) partem
Giving opportunity to of hearing of the other side
it is the principle that no person should be judged without a fair hearing in which each party is given the opportunity to respond to the evidence against them.
pesona non grata
pesona (Person) non (not) grata (welcome)
Person is not acceptable
In diplomacy, a persona non grata is a foreign person entering or remaining in a particular country is prohibited by that country’s government.
De minimus non curat lex
De (about) minimus (smallest, trifles) non (not) curat (care) lex (law)
“The law does not concern itself with trifles”
a legal doctrine by which a court refuses to consider trifling matters.
Queen Christina of Sweden favoured the similar Latin adage,
aquila non capit muscās.
Ex officio
by virtue of previously held position
Ultra vires
acting or done beyond one’s legal power or authority.
inter Vivos
inter (among) vivos (living)
among the living and dead
Inter Vivos is a legal term referring to a transfer or gift made during one’s lifetime, as opposed to a testamentary transfer under the subject of trust
Corpus juris
Corpus (body) juris (law)
“body of law.”
consists of the combination of all laws, cases and their various interpretations.
Corpus juris was originally used by the Romans.
El dorado
an imaginary place
(“The Golden King”)
the term used by the Spanish Empire to describe a mythical tribal chief of the Muisca people, an indigenous people of the Altiplano Cundiboyacense of Colombia, who, as an initiation rite, covered himself with gold dust and submerged in Lake Guatavita.
Quantum Ramifactus
the extent of damage suffered.
For example, In civil cases, the Quantum Ramifactus is decided by the court.
corpus delicti
concrete evidence of a crime, such as a corpse.
the facts and circumstances constituting a crime.
Corpus delicti is a term from Western jurisprudence referring to the principle that a crime must be proved to have occurred before a person can be convicted of committing that crime. For example, a person cannot be tried for larceny unless it can be proven that property has been stolen
vis-a-vis
face to face
Carte blanche
complete authority
complete freedom to act as one wishes.
Mala fide
in bad faith; with intent to deceive.
Tabula rasa
clean state
In Locke’s philosophy, tabula rasa was the theory that at birth the (human) mind is a “blank slate” without rules for processing data, and that data is added and rules for processing are formed solely by one’s sensory experiences.
De jure
concerning law
describes practices that are legally recognized, regardless of whether the practice exists in reality.
In contrast, de facto (“in fact”) describes situations that exist in reality, even if not legally recognized.[
raison d’etre
the most important reason or the purpose for someone or something’s existence.
lex est norma recti
lex (the law ) est (it is) norma (regimen) recti (right)
law is a rule of right.
It also means the law is the standard of uprightness.
de facto means
for all practical purposes
