legal terms (Basic Legal Terms )

legal terms

Basic Legal Terms

A

legal terms

Adjournment: is a temporary postponement to a case

Administrator: the person appointed to oversee an estate in the event that no will is written

Affidavit: A sworn written statement

Alimony: also known as “maintenance” and “spousal support”, alimony is the money paid by one spouse to another following a divorce

Annul: to void

Annulment: is a legal decree stating that a marriage was not valid – not to be confused with “divorce”

Appeal: a request to a higher court to overturn the judgment of a lower one

Arbitration: a method of amicable dispute resolution

Arraignment: the initial appearance before a judge in a criminal case – it is at this hearing that a defendant can enter a plea, ask to post bail, and, if the defendant cannot afford one, have a court lawyer appointed

Article of Incorporation: is a document filed with the state incorporating a limited liability company

Assignment: is the transfer of legal rights from one person to another – not the same as an novation, which is the transfer of legal obligations from one person to another

Award: a decision, usually by an arbitrator, in favor of a plaintiff or defendant, as the case may be

B

legal terms

Bail: money paid to the court to guarantee the defendant’s attendance at court at a later date. Money paid is more commonly known as a bail bond

Bankruptcy: a process governed by federal law where a person cannot pay bills when due and payable – chapter 7 and chapter 13 bankruptcy actions

Beneficiary: the person named as such in a will or insurance policy. A beneficiary may also be the equitable named person under a trust, where the legal owner is the trustee

Board of Directors: a group of individuals who run a company on behalf of the shareholders

Brief: a legal document that sets out the legal arguments in a lawsuit

Burden of Proof : is the duty, in law, to show, according to the facts, that the allegations to the lawsuit are either false or true – depending on the nature of the case

C

legal terms

Capital Gain / Loss: the profit or loss, as the case may be, from the sale of an asset – such as your home. Ordinarily, but not always, capital gain will be taxed

Cause of Action: is the reason/grounds on which the legal action is being submitted/brought

Caveat Emptor: Latin meaning “buyer beware”, this legal doctrine means that if you do not take due care when buying something, you cannot take your case before the courts

Certified Copy: also known as “certified true copy”, this is a document signed as being a true copy of the original

Certify: to testify in writing

Class Action Lawsuit: is where two or more plaintiffs join together to bring a case against another

Collateral : is the security you agree to put down on a loan and which you will have to forfeit in the event that you cannot repay the loan – also known as “security”

Complaint: is a civil law action that initiates a lawsuit

Condition: are circumstances which are essential to the ascertain of a right; for example, it may be a condition to a loan that you give security, without giving security, you do not have the right to the loan

Conflict of Interest: means that you have competing interests in something that would make it difficult or impossible for you to fulfill your duty impartially

Consideration: is the thing, usually money, which you pay, under a contract, in exchange for getting something else

Contract: is a legal agreement entered into between two or more persons, known as “parties to the contract”, whereby an offer is made and accepted

Costs: the sum awarded to the successful party to a lawsuit – and usually amount to the “costs”, including legal fees, of having brought the case

Counsel: legal representative: lawyer or attorney

Creditor: someone to whom you owe money

Custodian: person appointed to manage and disperse funds on behalf of a child – unlike a trustee, a custodian is normally a court order persons

D

legal terms

Damages: money paid to someone who has suffered injury or loss as a result of an action by a third party

Debtor: someone who owes money to a creditor

Decision: the verdict of a court in a case

Deed: a written legal document describing a piece of property and setting out the boundaries of that property

Default: is the failure to do something required of you under contract – an obligation. Ordinarily the obligation is to pay money, which is you do not pay, would mean you are in default of the contract

Defendant: is the person who has charges to answer (criminal), or is being sued (civil)

Defined Benefit/Contribution Plan: essentially both a defined benefit plan and a defined contribution plan are forms of 401(k) retirement plans

Deposition: is where a witness testifies under oath and you have pre-trial discovery to determine whether or not the deposition is in fact true

Discovery: the process, pre-trial, where each party to a case will ask for documentation and information relevant to their case

Dismissal: the termination of a case

Double Jeopardy: is the process of being tried twice for the same crime/offence

Due Process: is a legal doctrine that a person’s trial proceeding be fair

E

legal terms

Easement: a right given to one person to enter the property of another without having to ask permission each time – for example, the telephone/cable lines going into your home are an easement right

Encumbrance: is a claim on your property title – for example, a mortgage

Escrow: money paid into an account in the name of a third party which is then released once certain conditions have been fulfilled

Escrow Agent: the person appointed to look after the escrow account

Estate: all of the property of a deceased person

Evidence: documents, etc. that prove a claim as to facts

Executor: person named in a will to dispense the estate

Exempt Property: property which cannot form part of a bankruptcy lawsuit – usually work related property, such as the tools needed for work

Exhibit: document, evidence, provided to a court to support a claim

F

legal terms

Fault: to be at “fault” means that you are to blame for something

Felony: a crime the nature of which is serious enough for you to spend one or more years in jail

Fiduciary Duty: is where you have an obligation to act in the best interest of a third party

Fine: punishment imposed for an offence

Foreclosure: occurs when a borrower cannot repay their debts and the creditor forecloses and sells the property – such as a house

Franchise: a business relationship whereby the owner of a business licenses others to use the name of his business

G

legal terms

Good Faith: is to act honestly and without deception

Grand Jury: is a group of civilians convened to determine whether or not a criminal case has enough merit to proceed to trial

Grantor: the person who establishes a trust on behalf of the beneficiaries

Guarantee: a legal agreement under which a person agrees to guarantee the obligations of another

Guarantor: the person who provide a guarantee on behalf of another

H

legal terms

Heirs : person entitled by law to inherit the estate of a deceased person

I

legal terms

Implied: means to give the appearance – thus, you have “implied warranty”, which means that you have given the appearance that there was a warranty, even if there was not one

Incompetency: to lack legal qualification or fitness to discharge a legal duty

Indemnity: to provide an undertaking to secure against loss or damages in the event of certain events – in other words: “compensation”

Injunction: a court order requiring you to stop doing something

Intestate: means to die without having left a will

J

legal terms

Joint Custody: means that both parent have equal rights to a child following a divorce

Joint and Several Liability : means that you agree to be jointly and individual liable for a debt with another person

Judgment: the official decision given by a court

Jurisdiction: the court’s authority to hear your case

Jury: group of twelve citizens charged with hearing your case

L

legal terms

Lease: a legal agreement to lend/hire something to a third party.

Lemon Laws: laws that require manufactures to repair defective cars

Lessee: the person who hires something from a lessor

Lessor: the person who leases something

Liability: a duty or obligation for which you’re a legally responsible

Lien: is a charge over your property = such as a mortgage

Limited Liability Company : is a business that has shareholders who are limited in liability to the contribution of the fully paid up share

Living Will : is a legal document that sets out a person’s wishes should they become incapacitated

M

legal terms

Maintenance: money paid to a spouse in the event of a divorce (also known as alimony)

Minor: a person under the legal age of consent (18)

Motion: a request made to a judge asking him to rule on an issue of law

N

legal terms

Natural Person: an individual – as opposed to a company or partnership

Negligence: a failure to use a degree of care

Notary Public: person authorized to witness documents

O

legal terms

Oath: to swear to tell the truth

Order: direction (written or oral) of a court

P

legal terms

Petition: written application to the court asking the court to take action on a specific matter

Plaintiff: the person who starts/commences a lawsuit

Pleadings: applies in civil cases and are the allegations made by each of the parties to the case

Power of Attorney: a legal document authorizing another to act on you behalf

Probate: the legal process where the court oversees the distribution of property under a will

Proceedings: the process of a lawsuit

Promissory Note: a written document under which a person promises to pay another money on a given date and pursuant to specified terms set out in the promissory note (also known as a “PN”)

Q

Quid Pro Quo: is a Latin term which means you’ll get something for having given something

R

legal terms
Real Property: means land and all things attached to the land

Reasonable: means a level that an ordinary person would be expected to have, e.g. “reasonable care” means the level of care expected from a reasonable person

Reply: a plaintiff’s response to a defendant’s answer

S

legal terms

Security Agreement: means a contract under which you agree to give security as collateral for a loan in the event that the loan is not repaid

Settlement: is an agreement or decision in a civil case

Shareholder: someone who hold shares in a limited company

Standard of Care: degree of care required to prevent injury to another

Statute of Limitations: is the period prescribed by law within which you have to file a lawsuit, otherwise you forfeit your right to being an action

Strict Liability: means that even if there is no proof of negligence, you can still be found guilty of an offence

Subpoena : legal order compelling you to appear in court

Summons: a legal document notifying you that a lawsuit has been initiated against you and how and where you must answer the claim

T

legal terms

Testator: person who make a will

Tort : a civil wrong

Trust: property given to a trustee to manage on behalf of beneficiaries

Trustee: person charged with looking after property under trust

V

legal terms

Verdict: formal decision by a jury/court on the facts of a case

W

legal terms

Witness : a person who gives evidence in court under oath or who signs a document to testify/certify that the person who signed the document was who he claimed to be

Worker’s Compensation: paid to a worker who suffers a work related injury or illness

Writ: a judicial order 

legal terms

Basic Legal Terms

legal terms