This collection of lists of law topics collects the names of topics related to law

Law

Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...

. Everything related to law, even quite remotely, should be included on the alphabetical list, and on the appropriate topic lists. All links on topical lists should also appear in the main alphabetical listing. The process of creating lists is ongoing – these lists are neither complete nor up-to-date – if you see an article that should be listed but is not (or one that shouldn't be listed as legal but is), please update the lists accordingly.

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lists, law related (see below) --
Acts (see below) --

A

a posteriori

A Posteriori

Apart from the album, some additional remixes were released exclusively through the iTunes Store. They are:*"Eppur si muove"  – 6:39*"Dreaming of Andromeda" Apart from the album, some additional remixes were released exclusively through the iTunes Store. They are:*"Eppur si muove" (Tocadisco...

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ab extra --
ab initio

Ab initio

ab initio is a Latin term used in English, meaning from the beginning.ab initio may also refer to:* Ab Initio , a leading ETL Tool Software Company in the field of Data Warehousing.* ab initio quantum chemistry methods...

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Abandon --
Abandoned property --
Abandonment

Abandonment

The term abandonment has a multitude of uses, legal and extra-legal. This "signpost article" provides a guide to the various legal and quasi-legal uses of the word and includes links to articles that deal with each of the distinct concepts at greater length...

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Abduction

Kidnapping

In criminal law, kidnapping is the taking away or transportation of a person against that person's will, usually to hold the person in false imprisonment, a confinement without legal authority...

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Abet

Abettor

Abettor , is a legal term implying one who instigates, encourages or assists another to commit an offence.An abettor differs from an accessory in that he must be present at the commission of the crime; all abettors Abettor (from to abet, Old French abeter, á and beter, to bait, urge dogs upon any...

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Abeyance

Abeyance

Abeyance is a state of expectancy in respect of property, titles or office, when the right to them is not vested in any one person, but awaits the appearance or determination of the true owner. In law, the term abeyance can only be applied to such future estates as have not yet vested or possibly...

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Able-bodied

Able-bodied

Able-bodied refers, in law, to an individual's physical or mental capacity for gainful employment or military service, and it is in this sense that the term is also used regarding eligibility for payment of child support or alimony....

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Abolitionism

Abolitionism

Abolitionism is a movement to end slavery.In western Europe and the Americas abolitionism was a movement to end the slave trade and set slaves free. At the behest of Dominican priest Bartolomé de las Casas who was shocked at the treatment of natives in the New World, Spain enacted the first...

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Abortion

Abortion

Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...

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Abortion, legal and moral issues --
Abrogate

Denunciation

Denunciation or abrogation refers to the announcement of a treaty's termination. Some treaties contain a termination clause that specifies that the treaty will terminate if a certain number of nations denounce the treaty...

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Abstention doctrine

Abstention doctrine

An abstention doctrine is any of several doctrines that a court of law in the United States of America might apply to refuse to hear a case, when hearing the case would potentially intrude upon the powers of another court...

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Abstract

Abstract (law)

In law, an abstract is a brief statement that contains the most important points of a long legal document or of several related legal papers.-Abstract of title:The Abstract of Title, used in real estate transactions, is the more common form of abstract...

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Abstract of judgment

Abstract of judgment

"Abstract of judgment" is a written summary of a judgment which states how much money the losing defendant owes to the person who won the lawsuit , the rate of interest to be paid on the judgment amount, court costs, and any specific orders that the losing defendant must obey, which abstract is...

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Abstract of title --
Abuse of discretion --
Abuse of process

Abuse of process

Abuse of process is a cause of action in tort arising from one party making a malicious and deliberate misuse or perversion of regularly issued court process not justified by the underlying legal action.It is a common law intentional tort...

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Abut

Abut

In property law, when two parcels abut it means they are adjacent to each other and against each others' borders....

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Acceleration

Acceleration

In physics, acceleration is the rate of change of velocity with time. In one dimension, acceleration is the rate at which something speeds up or slows down. However, since velocity is a vector, acceleration describes the rate of change of both the magnitude and the direction of velocity. ...

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Acceleration clause

Acceleration clause

An acceleration clause, in the law of contracts, is a term that fully matures the performance due from a party upon a breach of the contract. Such clauses are most prevalent in mortgages and similar contracts to purchase real estate in installments....

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Accept

Accept

Accept is a German heavy metal band from the town of Solingen, originally assembled by former vocalist Udo Dirkschneider, guitarist Wolf Hoffmann and bassist Peter Baltes. Their beginnings can be traced back to the late 1960s...

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Acceptance

Acceptance

Acceptance is a person's agreement to experience a situation, to follow a process or condition without attempting to change it, protest, or exit....

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Acceptance of service --
Accession --
Accessory

Accessory (legal term)

An accessory is a person who assists in the commission of a crime, but who does not actually participate in the commission of the crime as a joint principal...

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Accommodation

Accommodation (law)

Accommodation is a term used in United States contract law under the Uniform Commercial Code to describe a delivery of nonconforming goods meant as a partial performance of a contract for the sale of goods, where a full performance is not possible. The accommodation must be specified as such in a...

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Accomplice

Accomplice

At law, an accomplice is a person who actively participates in the commission of a crime, even though they take no part in the actual criminal offense. For example, in a bank robbery, the person who points the gun at the teller and asks for the money is guilty of armed robbery...

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Accord and satisfaction

Accord and satisfaction

Accord and satisfaction is a contract law concept about the purchase of the release from a debt obligation. The payment is typically less than what is owed and is not paid by the actual performance of the original obligation...

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Account stated

Account stated

Under United States law, account stated is a statement between a creditor and a debtor based upon a series of prior transactions that a particular amount is owed to the creditor as of a certain date...

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Accountability

Accountability

Accountability is a concept in ethics and governance with several meanings. It is often used synonymously with such concepts as responsibility, answerability, blameworthiness, liability, and other terms associated with the expectation of account-giving...

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Accounting period

Accounting period

An accounting period is a period with reference to which United Kingdom corporation tax is charged. It helps dictate when tax is paid on income and gains...

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Accounting reference date

Accounting reference date

A fiscal year is a period used for calculating annual financial statements in businesses and other organizations...

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Accounts payable

Accounts payable

Accounts payable is a file or account sub-ledger that records amounts that a person or company owes to suppliers, but has not paid yet , sometimes referred as trade payables. When an invoice is received, it is added to the file, and then removed when it is paid...

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Accounts receivable

Accounts receivable

Accounts receivable also known as Debtors, is money owed to a business by its clients and shown on its Balance Sheet as an asset...

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Accrue --
Accusation

Criminal accusation

A criminal accusation is the process of declaring one's belief in another's liability for that other's criminal action. A criminal accusation may be informally made through a declaration made to the public at large or by the filing of a formal accusation in a court of law by a person legally...

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Accused

Indictment

An indictment , in the common-law legal system, is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that maintain the concept of felonies, the serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that lack the concept of felonies often use that of an indictable offence—an...

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Acknowledge

Acknowledgment (law)

In law, an acknowledgment is a declaration or avowal of one's own act, to give it legal validity, such as the acknowledgment of a deed before a proper officer...

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Acknowledgement of service --
Acknowledgment

Acknowledgment (law)

In law, an acknowledgment is a declaration or avowal of one's own act, to give it legal validity, such as the acknowledgment of a deed before a proper officer...

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Acquis

Acquis

The Community acquis or acquis communautaire , sometimes called the EU acquis, and often shortened to acquis, is the accumulated legislation, legal acts, and court decisions which constitute the body of European Union law...

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Acquit --
Acquittal

Acquittal

In the common law tradition, an acquittal formally certifies the accused is free from the charge of an offense, as far as the criminal law is concerned. This is so even where the prosecution is abandoned nolle prosequi...

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Act of God

Act of God

Act of God is a legal term for events outside of human control, such as sudden floods or other natural disasters, for which no one can be held responsible.- Contract law :...

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Act of Parliament

Act of Parliament

An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...

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Action --
Actionable --
Actual controversy --
Actual malice

Actual malice

Actual malice in United States law is a condition required to establish libel against public officials or public figures and is defined as "knowledge that the information was false" or that it was published "with reckless disregard of whether it was false or not." Reckless disregard does not...

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Actual notice

Actual notice

Actual notice is a law term, used most frequently in civil procedure. It is notice delivered in such a way as to give legally sufficient assurance that actual knowledge of the matter has been conveyed to the recipient...

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actus reus

Actus reus

Actus reus, sometimes called the external element or the objective element of a crime, is the Latin term for the "guilty act" which, when proved beyond a reasonable doubt in combination with the mens rea, "guilty mind", produces criminal liability in the common law-based criminal law jurisdictions...

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ad colligenda bona

Ad colligenda bona

Ad colligenda bona is a Latin phrase that approximately translates into "to collect the goods". In cases involving something quid pro quo, a prosecutor may be eligible for certain goods. Or, if specific items i.e...

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ad hoc

Ad hoc

Ad hoc is a Latin phrase meaning "for this". It generally signifies a solution designed for a specific problem or task, non-generalizable, and not intended to be able to be adapted to other purposes. Compare A priori....

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ad idem --
ad infinitum

Ad infinitum

Ad infinitum is a Latin phrase meaning "to infinity."In context, it usually means "continue forever, without limit" and thus can be used to describe a non-terminating process, a non-terminating repeating process, or a set of instructions to be repeated "forever," among other uses...

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ad litem

Ad litem

Ad litem is a term used in law to refer to a party appointed by a court to act in a lawsuit on behalf of another party—for instance, a child or an incapacitated adult—who is deemed incapable of representing him or herself...

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ad quod damnum

Ad quod damnum

Ad quod damnum or ad damnum is a Latin phrase meaning "According to the harm" or "appropriate to the harm." It is used in tort law as a measure of damage inflicted, and implying a remedy, if one exists, ought to correspond specifically and only to the damage suffered. It is also used in pleading,...

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ad seriatim --
ad valorem --
Addendum

Addendum

An addendum, in general, is an addition required to be made to a document by its reader subsequent to its printing or publication. It comes from the Latin verbal phrase addendum est, being the gerundive form of the verb addo, addere, addidi, additum, "to give to, add to", meaning " must be added"...

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Adeem

Ademption

Ademption is a term used in the law of wills to determine what happens when property bequeathed under a will is no longer in the testator's estate at the time of the testator's death. For a devise of a specific item of property , such property is considered adeemed, and the gift fails...

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Ademption

Ademption

Ademption is a term used in the law of wills to determine what happens when property bequeathed under a will is no longer in the testator's estate at the time of the testator's death. For a devise of a specific item of property , such property is considered adeemed, and the gift fails...

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Adequate remedy

Adequate remedy

An adequate remedy or adequate remedy at law is a legal remedy which the court deems satisfactory, without recourse to an equitable remedy....

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Adhesion contract --
Adjourn --
Adjournment sine die

Adjournment 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...

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Adjournment in contemplation of dismissal --
Adjudication

Adjudication

Adjudication is the legal process by which an arbiter or judge reviews evidence and argumentation including legal reasoning set forth by opposing parties or litigants to come to a decision which determines rights and obligations between the parties involved....

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Adjusted basis

Adjusted basis

In tax accounting, adjusted basis is the net cost of an asset after adjusting for various tax-related items.Adjusted basis is one of two variables in the formula used to compute gains and losses when determining gross income for tax purposes...

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Adjuster

Claims adjuster

Claims adjusters investigate insurance claims by interviewing the claimant and witnesses, consulting police and hospital records, and inspecting property damage to determine the extent of the company’s liability. In the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, South Africa, the Caribbean and New Zealand...

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Administer --
Administration

Administration of an estate on death

In English law, Administration of an estate on death arises if the deceased is legally intestate. In United States law, the term Estate Administration is used....

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administration order --
Administrative hearing --
Administrative law

Administrative law

Administrative law is the body of law that governs the activities of administrative agencies of government. Government agency action can include rulemaking, adjudication, or the enforcement of a specific regulatory agenda. Administrative law is considered a branch of public law...

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Administrative law judge

Administrative law judge

An administrative law judge in the United States is an official who presides at an administrative trial-type hearing to resolve a dispute between a government agency and someone affected by a decision of that agency. The ALJ is usually the initial trier of fact and decision maker...

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Administrative procedure act

Administrative Procedure Act

The Administrative Procedure Act , , is the United States federal law that governs the way in which administrative agencies of the federal government of the United States may propose and establish regulations. The APA also sets up a process for the United States federal courts to directly review...

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Administrator

Administration (insolvency)

As a legal concept, administration is a procedure under the insolvency laws of a number of common law jurisdictions. It functions as a rescue mechanism for insolvent entities and allows them to carry on running their business. The process – an alternative to liquidation – is often known as going...

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Administrator

Administrator (law)

In law an administrator can be:* a person appointed by the court to handle the estate of someone who died without a will ....

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Admiralty

Admiralty

The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...

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Admiralty actions --
Admiralty court

Admiralty court

Admiralty courts, also known as maritime courts, are courts exercising jurisdiction over all maritime contracts, torts, injuries and offences.- Admiralty Courts in England and Wales :...

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Admiralty law

Admiralty law

Admiralty law is a distinct body of law which governs maritime questions and offenses. It is a body of both domestic law governing maritime activities, and private international law governing the relationships between private entities which operate vessels on the oceans...

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Admissible evidence

Admissible evidence

Admissible evidence, in a court of law, is any testimonial, documentary, or tangible evidence that may be introduced to a factfinder—usually a judge or jury—in order to establish or to bolster a point put forth by a party to the proceeding...

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Admission against interest --
Admission of evidence --
Admission (law)

Admission (law)

An admission in the law of evidence is a prior statement by an adverse party which can be admitted into evidence over a hearsay objection. In general, admissions are admissible in criminal and civil cases.At common law, admissions were admissible...

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Admission to bail --
Admission to the bar

Admission to the bar

An admission to practice law, also called admission to the bar, is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. Becoming a lawyer is a widely varied process around the world. Common to all jurisdictions are requirements of age and competence; some jurisdictions also require citizenship...

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Adopt --
Adoption

Adoption

Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting for another and, in so doing, permanently transfers all rights and responsibilities from the original parent or parents...

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Adultery

Adultery

Adultery is sexual infidelity to one's spouse, and is a form of extramarital sex. It originally referred only to sex between a woman who was married and a person other than her spouse. Even in cases of separation from one's spouse, an extramarital affair is still considered adultery.Adultery is...

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Advance directive --
Adversary system --
Adverse

Adverse

Adverse or adverse interest, in law, is anything that functions contrary to a party's interest. This word should not be confused with averse.-Adverse possession:...

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Adverse interest --
Adverse party

Adverse party

An adverse party is an opposing party in a lawsuit under an adversary system of law. In general, an adverse party is a party against whom judgment is sought...

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Adverse possession

Adverse possession

Adverse possession is a process by which premises can change ownership. It is a common law concept concerning the title to real property . By adverse possession, title to another's real property can be acquired without compensation, by holding the property in a manner that conflicts with the true...

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Adverse witness --
Advisory opinion

Advisory opinion

An advisory opinion is an opinion issued by a court that does not have the effect of adjudicating a specific legal case, but merely advises on the constitutionality or interpretation of a law. Some countries have procedures by which the executive or legislative branches may certify important...

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Advocate

Advocate

An advocate is a term for a professional lawyer used in several different legal systems. These include Scotland, South Africa, India, Scandinavian jurisdictions, Israel, and the British Crown dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man...

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Affiant --
Affidavit

Affidavit

An affidavit is a written sworn statement of fact voluntarily made by an affiant or deponent under an oath or affirmation administered by a person authorized to do so by law. Such statement is witnessed as to the authenticity of the affiant's signature by a taker of oaths, such as a notary public...

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Affirm

Affirmation in law

In law, an affirmation is a solemn declaration allowed to those who conscientiously object to taking an oath. An affirmation has exactly the same legal effect as an oath, but is usually taken to avoid the religious implications of an oath...

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Affirmative action

Affirmative action

Affirmative action refers to policies that take factors including "race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation or national origin" into consideration in order to benefit an underrepresented group, usually as a means to counter the effects of a history of discrimination.-Origins:The term...

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Affirmative defense

Affirmative defense

A defendant offers an affirmative defense when responding to a plaintiff's claim in common law jurisdictions, or, more familiarly, in criminal law. Essentially, the defendant affirms that the condition is occurring or has occurred but offers a defense that bars, or prevents, the plaintiff's claim. ...

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Affix

Affix

An affix is a morpheme that is attached to a word stem to form a new word. Affixes may be derivational, like English -ness and pre-, or inflectional, like English plural -s and past tense -ed. They are bound morphemes by definition; prefixes and suffixes may be separable affixes...

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Affreightment

Affreightment

Affreightment is a legal term used in shipping.Contract of Affreightment is the expression usually employed to describe the contract between a ship-owner and another person called the charterer, by which the ship-owner agrees to carry goods of the charterer in his ship, or to give to the charterer...

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After-acquired property

After-acquired property

The After Acquired Title Doctrine is a legal doctrine under which, if a grantor conveys what is mistakenly believed to be good title to land that he or she did not own, and the grantor later acquires that title, it vests automatically in the grantee. A practical example is Husband and Wife own...

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Age discrimination --
Age of consent

Age of consent

While the phrase age of consent typically does not appear in legal statutes, when used in relation to sexual activity, the age of consent is the minimum age at which a person is considered to be legally competent to consent to sexual acts. The European Union calls it the legal age for sexual...

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Age of majority

Age of majority

The age of majority is the threshold of adulthood as it is conceptualized in law. It is the chronological moment when minors cease to legally be considered children and assume control over their persons, actions, and decisions, thereby terminating the legal control and legal responsibilities of...

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Agency

Agency (law)

The law of agency is an area of commercial law dealing with a contractual or quasi-contractual, or non-contractual set of relationships when a person, called the agent, is authorized to act on behalf of another to create a legal relationship with a third party...

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Agency agreement

Agency agreement

An agency agreement is a legal contract creating a fiduciary relationship whereby the first party agrees that the actions of a second party binds the principal to later agreements made by the agent as if the principal had himself personally made the later agreements. The power of the agent to...

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Agent --
Agent for acceptance of service --
Aggravated assault --
Agreed statement

Agreed statement

In the American legal system, an agreed statement is an agreement between two parties to a lawsuit or an appeal of a judgment. The agreements are always limited to cases where the dispute is a question of legal interpretation rather than a dispute concerning the facts of a case....

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Aid and abet --
Aleatory

Aleatory

Aleatoricism is the incorporation of chance into the process of creation, especially the creation of art or media. The word derives from the Latin word alea, the rolling of dice...

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Alias

Pseudonym

A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...

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Alibi

Alibi

Alibi is a 1929 American crime film directed by Roland West. The screenplay was written by West and C. Gardner Sullivan, who adapted the 1927 Broadway stage play, Nightstick, written by Elaine Sterne Carrington, J.C...

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Alien

Alien (law)

In law, an alien is a person in a country who is not a citizen of that country.-Categorization:Types of "alien" persons are:*An alien who is legally permitted to remain in a country which is foreign to him or her. On specified terms, this kind of alien may be called a legal alien of that country...

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Alienation

Alienation (property law)

Alienation, in property law, is the capacity for a piece of property or a property right to be sold or otherwise transferred from one party to another. Although property is generally deemed to be alienable, it may be subject to restraints on alienation....

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Alienation of affections

Alienation of affections

At common law, alienation of affections is a tort action brought by a deserted spouse against a third party alleged to be responsible for the failure of the marriage...

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Alimony

Alimony

Alimony is a U.S. term denoting a legal obligation to provide financial support to one's spouse from the other spouse after marital separation or from the ex-spouse upon divorce...

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All the estate I own --
Allegation

Allegation

An allegation is a claim of a fact by a party in a pleading, which the party claims to be able to prove. Allegations remain assertions without proof, until they can be proved....

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Allege --
Allocation questionnaire

Allocation questionnaire

An allocation questionnaire is a form used in English legal practice. After a claim is made, if a defence is filed each party is required to complete and return an allocation questionnaire to the court so that the judge may properly allocate the claim to a track and give further directions towards...

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Allocatur

Allocatur

Allocatur , in law, refers to the allowance of a writ or other pleading. It may also designate a certificate given by a taxing master, at the termination of an action, for the allowance of costs.-Pennsylvania:...

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Allocution

Allocution

Generally, to allocute in law means "to speak out formally." In the field of apologetics, allocution is generally done in defense of a belief. In politics, one may allocute before a legislative body in an effort to influence their position on an issue...

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Allodial --
Alluvion

Alluvion

' is a term describing the increase in the area of land due to sediment deposited by a river. This changes the size of a piece of land and thus its value over time.-See also:*Alluvial fan*Alluvial plain...

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Alodium --
alter ego

Alter ego

An alter ego is a second self, which is believe to be distinct from a person's normal or original personality. The term was coined in the early nineteenth century when dissociative identity disorder was first described by psychologists...

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Alternate director

Alternate director

An alternate director is a person who is appointed to attend a board meeting on behalf of the director of a company where the principal director would be otherwise unable to attend...

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Alternative dispute resolution

Alternative dispute resolution

Alternative Dispute Resolution includes dispute resolution processes and techniques that act as a means for disagreeing parties to come to an agreement short of litigation. ADR basically is an alternative to a formal court hearing or litigation...

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Alternative Minimum Tax

Alternative Minimum Tax

The Alternative Minimum Tax is an income tax imposed by the United States federal government on individuals, corporations, estates, and trusts. AMT is imposed at a nearly flat rate on an adjusted amount of taxable income above a certain threshold . This exemption is substantially higher than the...

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Alternative pleading

Alternative pleading

Alternative pleading permits a party in a court action to argue multiple possibilities that may be mutually exclusive by making use of legal fiction....

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ALWD Citation Manual

ALWD Citation Manual

The ALWD Citation Manual is a legal citation system for the United States compiled by the Association of Legal Writing Directors. Its first edition was published in 2000. Currently, it is in its fourth edition ....

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Ambiguity

Ambiguity

Ambiguity of words or phrases is the ability to express more than one interpretation. It is distinct from vagueness, which is a statement about the lack of precision contained or available in the information.Context may play a role in resolving ambiguity...

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Amelioration Act 1798

Amelioration Act 1798

The Amelioration Act 1798 was a statute passed by the Leeward Islands in relation to slaves in the British Caribbean colonies....

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Amended complaint --
Amended pleading --
American Academy of Appellate Lawyers

American Academy of Appellate Lawyers

The American Academy of Appellate Lawyers is a non-profit organization consisting of the Fellows who have been elected to the Academy. It was founded in 1990. Its mission is to "advance the highest standards and practices of appellate advocacy and to recognize outstanding appellate lawyers."The...

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American Arbitration Association

American Arbitration Association

The American Arbitration Association is a private enterprise in the business of arbitration, and one of several arbitration organizations that administers arbitration proceedings. The AAA also administers mediation and other forms of alternative dispute resolution. It is headquartered in New York...

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American Bar Association

American Bar Association

The American Bar Association , founded August 21, 1878, is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. The ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of academic standards for law schools, and the formulation...

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American Civil Liberties Union

American Civil Liberties Union

The American Civil Liberties Union is a U.S. non-profit organization whose stated mission is "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States." It works through litigation, legislation, and...

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American Civil Rights Movement --
American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man

American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man

The American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man was the world's first international human rights instrument of a general nature, predating the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by less than a year....

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American Depositary Receipt

American Depositary Receipt

An American depositary receipt is a negotiable security that represents the underlying securities of a non-U.S. company that trades in the US financial markets...

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American Law Institute

American Law Institute

The American Law Institute was established in 1923 to promote the clarification and simplification of American common law and its adaptation to changing social needs. The ALI drafts, approves, and publishes Restatements of the Law, Principles of the Law, model codes, and other proposals for law...

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amicus curiae

Amicus curiae

An amicus curiae is someone, not a party to a case, who volunteers to offer information to assist a court in deciding a matter before it...

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Amnesty

Amnesty

Amnesty is a legislative or executive act by which a state restores those who may have been guilty of an offense against it to the positions of innocent people, without changing the laws defining the offense. It includes more than pardon, in as much as it obliterates all legal remembrance of the...

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Amnesty International

Amnesty International

Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...

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Amortization

Amortization

Amortization is the process of decreasing, or accounting for, an amount over a period. The word comes from Middle English amortisen to kill, alienate in mortmain, from Anglo-French amorteser, alteration of amortir, from Vulgar Latin admortire to kill, from Latin ad- + mort-, mors death.When used...

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An eye for an eye

An eye for an eye

The meaning of the principle, an eye for an eye, is that a person who has injured another person receives the same injury in compensation. The exact Latin to English translation of this phrase is actually "The law of retaliation." At the root of this principle is that one of the purposes of the...

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Ancillary administration

Ancillary administration

Ancillary administration is "the administration of a decedent's estate in a state other than the one in which she lived, for the purpose of disposing of property she owned there." Another definition is the "administration of an estate's asset's in another state." This is often a necessary...

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Ancillary jurisdiction

Ancillary jurisdiction

Ancillary jurisdiction allows a United States federal court to hear certain claims sufficiently related to the original claim that would otherwise defeat the court's jurisdiction...

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Ancillary relief

Ancillary relief

In English law, an application for financial relief following the presentation of a petition for divorce, nullity or judicial separation is described as ancillary relief...

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Animal rights

Animal rights

Animal rights, also known as animal liberation, is the idea that the most basic interests of non-human animals should be afforded the same consideration as the similar interests of human beings...

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animus nocendi

Animus nocendi

In jurisprudence, animus nocendi is the subjective state of mind of the author of a crime, with reference to the exact knowledge of illegal content of his behaviour, and of its possible consequences....

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Animus revertendi

Animus revertendi

The term animus revertendi is a Latin phrase that means "With intention to return". It can refer to an animal that is under the care of another, which distinguishes it from an animal ferae naturae . It is a type of ownership right recognized by property law. This legal concept also supports the...

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annual general meeting

Annual general meeting

An annual general meeting is a meeting that official bodies, and associations involving the public , are often required by law to hold...

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Annul --
Annulment

Annulment

Annulment is a legal procedure for declaring a marriage null and void. Unlike divorce, it is usually retroactive, meaning that an annulled marriage is considered to be invalid from the beginning almost as if it had never taken place...

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Anomie

Anomie

Anomie is a term meaning "without Law" to describe a lack of social norms; "normlessness". It describes the breakdown of social bonds between an individual and their community ties, with fragmentation of social identity and rejection of self-regulatory values. It was popularized by French...

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Answer

Answer

Generally, an answer is a reply to a question or is a solution, a retaliation, or a response that is relevant to the said question.In law, an answer was originally a solemn assertion in opposition to some one or something, and thus generally any counter-statement or defense, a reply to a question...

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Antecedent (law)

Antecedent (law)

Antecedents are the life history and previous convictions of a defendant in a criminal case. They are colloquially known as "previous convictions" in the U.K. and "prior convictions" in the United States and Australia.When a defendant is being sentenced for a crime, the court will be told his or...

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Antenuptial (prenuptial) agreement --
Anticipatory breach --
Antidisestablishmentarianism

Antidisestablishmentarianism

Antidisestablishmentarianism is a political position that originated in 19th-century Britain in opposition to proposals for the disestablishment of the Church of England, that is, to remove the Anglican Church's status as the state church of England, Ireland, and Wales.The establishment was...

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Antinomianism

Antinomianism

Antinomianism is defined as holding that, under the gospel dispensation of grace, moral law is of no use or obligation because faith alone is necessary to salvation....

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Antitrust

Antitrust

The United States antitrust law is a body of laws that prohibits anti-competitive behavior and unfair business practices. Antitrust laws are intended to encourage competition in the marketplace. These competition laws make illegal certain practices deemed to hurt businesses or consumers or both,...

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Antitrust laws --
Apartheid --
Apparent authority

Apparent authority

Apparent authority relates to the doctrines of the law of agency. It is relevant particularly in corporate law and constitutional law. Apparent authority refers to a situation where a reasonable person would understand that an agent had authority to act...

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Appeal

Appeal

An appeal is a petition for review of a case that has been decided by a court of law. The petition is made to a higher court for the purpose of overturning the lower court's decision....

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Appeal bond --
Appeals court --
Appear

Appear

Appear Networks Systems AB is a software company specializing in enterprise mobility. Its suite of products is a mobile middleware platform designed to power mobile applications and services based on context awareness. Context awareness is the use of situational information aiming at reducing...

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Appellant --
Appellate court

Appellate court

An appellate court, commonly called an appeals court or court of appeals or appeal court , is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal...

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Appellate review --
Appellee --
Applicant --
Appraiser

Appraiser

An appraiser , is one who sets a value upon property, real or personal. In England the business of an appraiser is usually combined with that of an auctioneer, while the word itself has a similar meaning to that of "valuer." In the United States, the most common usage relates to real estate...

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Appreciate --
Appreciation

Appreciation

In accounting, appreciation of an asset is an increase in its value. In this sense it is the reverse of depreciation, which measures the fall in value of assets over their normal life-time...

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Apprenticeship

Apprenticeship

Apprenticeship is a system of training a new generation of practitioners of a skill. Apprentices or protégés build their careers from apprenticeships...

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Approach the bench --
Appurtenances --
Appurtenant --
Arbitrary

Arbitrary

Arbitrariness is a term given to choices and actions subject to individual will, judgment or preference, based solely upon an individual's opinion or discretion.Arbitrary decisions are not necessarily the same as random decisions...

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Arbitration

Arbitration

Arbitration, a form of alternative dispute resolution , is a legal technique for the resolution of disputes outside the courts, where the parties to a dispute refer it to one or more persons , by whose decision they agree to be bound...

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Arbitration award

Arbitration award

An arbitration award is a determination on the merits by an arbitration tribunal in an arbitration, and is analogous to a judgment in a court of law...

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Arbitrator --
arguendo

Arguendo

Arguendo is a Latin legal term meaning for the sake of argument. The phrase "assuming, arguendo, that ..." is used in courtroom settings and academic legal settings to designate provisional and unendorsed assumptions that will be made at the beginning of an argument in order to explore their...

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Argumentative

Argumentative

Argumentative is an evidentiary objection raised in response to a question which prompts a witness to draw inferences from facts of the case. An argumentative objection is raised as "badgering the witness."...

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Arm's length --
Arraign --
Arraignment

Arraignment

Arraignment is a formal reading of a criminal complaint in the presence of the defendant to inform the defendant of the charges against him or her. In response to arraignment, the accused is expected to enter a plea...

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Arrears

Arrears

Arrears is a legal term for the part of a debt that is overdue after missing one or more required payments. The amount of the arrears is the amount accrued from the date on which the first missed payment was due...

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Arrest

Arrest

An arrest is the act of depriving a person of his or her liberty usually in relation to the purported investigation and prevention of crime and presenting into the criminal justice system or harm to oneself or others...

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Arrest warrant

Arrest warrant

An arrest warrant is a warrant issued by and on behalf of the state, which authorizes the arrest and detention of an individual.-Canada:Arrest warrants are issued by a judge or justice of the peace under the Criminal Code of Canada....

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Arson

Arson

Arson is the crime of intentionally or maliciously setting fire to structures or wildland areas. It may be distinguished from other causes such as spontaneous combustion and natural wildfires...

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Article I and Article III tribunals

Article I and Article III tribunals

In the United States, the American legal system includes both state courts and United States federal courts. The federal tribunals may be an Article III tribunal or another adjudicative body classified as an Article I or an Article IV tribunal...

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Articles of Association

Articles of Association

The Continental Association, often known simply as the "Association", was a system created by the First Continental Congress in 1774 for implementing a trade boycott with Great Britain...

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Articles of impeachment

Articles of impeachment

The articles of impeachment are the set of charges drafted against a public official to initiate the impeachment process. The articles of impeachment do not result in the removal of the official, but instead require the enacting body to take further action, such as bringing the articles to a vote...

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Articles of Incorporation

Articles of Incorporation

The Articles of Incorporation are the primary rules governing the management of a corporation in the United States and Canada, and are filed with a state or other regulatory agency.An equivalent term for LLCs in the United States is the Articles of Organization...

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Articles of War

Articles of War

The Articles of War are a set of regulations drawn up to govern the conduct of a country's military and naval forces. The phrase was first used in 1637 in Robert Monro's His expedition with the worthy Scots regiment called Mac-keyes regiment etc. and can be used to refer to military law in general...

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As is

As is

As is is a legal term used to disclaim some implied warranties for an item being sold. Certain types of implied warranties must be specifically disclaimed, such as the implied warranty of title...

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Asharite --
Assault

Assault

In law, assault is a crime causing a victim to fear violence. The term is often confused with battery, which involves physical contact. The specific meaning of assault varies between countries, but can refer to an act that causes another to apprehend immediate and personal violence, or in the more...

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Asset

Asset

In financial accounting, assets are economic resources. Anything tangible or intangible that is capable of being owned or controlled to produce value and that is held to have positive economic value is considered an asset...

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Assignment (law)

Assignment (law)

An assignment is a term used with similar meanings in the law of contracts and in the law of real estate. In both instances, it encompasses the transfer of rights held by one party—the assignor—to another party—the assignee...

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Assigned risk

Assigned risk

Assigned risk means a driver of a motor vehicle, or a class of such drivers, who would be denied insurance coverage by insurance companies, but are required to be covered under U.S. state law...

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Assignee --
Assignment for benefit of creditors --
Assigns --
Assisted person

Assisted person

An assisted person has several meanings in law, referring generally to indigent people.Under Great Britain statutory law, one who is eligible for Legal aid. It also refers to such a person under Scottish law....

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Assize Court --
Associate justice

Associate Justice

Associate Justice or Associate Judge is the title for a member of a judicial panel who is not the Chief Justice in some jurisdictions. The title "Associate Justice" is used for members of the United States Supreme Court and some state supreme courts, and for some other courts in Commonwealth...

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Association

Voluntary association

A voluntary association or union is a group of individuals who enter into an agreement as volunteers to form a body to accomplish a purpose.Strictly speaking, in many jurisdictions no formalities are necessary to start an association...

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Assumption of risk

Assumption of risk

Assumption of risk is a defense in the law of torts, which bars a plaintiff from recovery against a negligent tortfeasor if the defendant can demonstrate that the plaintiff voluntarily and knowingly assumed the risks at issue inherent to the dangerous activity in which he was participating at the...

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Assured --
Asylum and Immigration Tribunal

Asylum and Immigration Tribunal

The Asylum and Immigration Tribunal was a tribunal constituted in the United Kingdom with jurisdiction to hear appeals from many immigration and asylum decisions...

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Asylum seeker --
At will --
At will employment --
Attachment

Attachment (law)

Attachment is a legal process by which a court of law, at the request of a creditor, designates specific property owned by the debtor to be transferred to the creditor, or sold for the benefit of the creditor. A wide variety of legal mechanisms are employed by debtors to prevent the attachment of...

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Attachment of earnings

Attachment of earnings

Attachment of Earnings is a legal process in civil litigation by which a defendant's wages or other earnings are taken to pay for a debt. This collections process is used in the common law system, especially Britain and the United States, but in other legal regimes as well.Ballentine's Law...

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Attempt

Attempt

Attempt was originally an offence under the common law of England.Attempt crimes are crimes where the defendant's actions have the form of the actual enaction of the crime itself: the actions must go beyond mere preparation....

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Attestation clause

Attestation clause

In the statutory law of wills and trusts, an attestation clause is a clause that is typically appended to a will, often just below the place of the testator's signature....

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Attorney at law

Attorney at law

An attorney at law in the United States is a practitioner in a court of law who is legally qualified to prosecute and defend actions in such court on the retainer of clients. Alternative terms include counselor and lawyer...

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Attorney general

Attorney General

In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general, or attorney-general, is the main legal advisor to the government, and in some jurisdictions he or she may also have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions.The term is used to refer to any person...

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Attorney of record

Attorney of record

An attorney of record is a lawyer or barrister who has appeared in court or signed pleadings. The attorney of record in American or British courts remains the official lawyer, until some other attorney replaces him or her. This attorney "has made an appearance on behalf of a party to a...

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Attorney's advertising --
Attorney's fee

Attorney's fee

Attorney's fee is a chiefly United States term for compensation for legal services performed by an attorney for a client, in or out of court. It may be an hourly, flat-rate or contingent fee. Attorney fees are separate from fines, compensatory and punitive damages, and from court costs in a...

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Attorney's work product --
Attorney-client privilege

Attorney-client privilege

Attorney–client privilege is a legal concept that protects certain communications between a client and his or her attorney and keeps those communications confidential....

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Attorney-in-fact --
Attractive nuisance doctrine

Attractive nuisance doctrine

In the law of torts, the attractive nuisance doctrine states that landowner may be held liable for injuries to children trespassing on the land if the injury is caused by a hazardous object or condition on the land that is likely to attract children who are unable to appreciate the risk posed by...

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Audit

Audit

The general definition of an audit is an evaluation of a person, organization, system, process, enterprise, project or product. The term most commonly refers to audits in accounting, but similar concepts also exist in project management, quality management, and energy conservation.- Accounting...

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Auditor --
Australian Constitution --
Australian Constitutional History --
Australian copyright law

Australian copyright law

The copyright law of Australia defines the legally enforceable rights of creators of creative and artistic works under Australian law. The scope of copyright in Australia is defined in the Australian Copyright Act 1968 , which applies the national law throughout Australia...

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Authorised share capital --
Authoritarianism

Authoritarianism

Authoritarianism is a form of social organization characterized by submission to authority. It is usually opposed to individualism and democracy...

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Authorities --
Authority

Authority

The word Authority is derived mainly from the Latin word auctoritas, meaning invention, advice, opinion, influence, or command. In English, the word 'authority' can be used to mean power given by the state or by academic knowledge of an area .-Authority in Philosophy:In...

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Authorize --
Automatic stay

Automatic stay

In bankruptcy law, an automatic stay is an automatic injunction that halts actions by creditors, with certain exceptions, to collect debts from a debtor who has declared bankruptcy. Under section 362 of the United States Bankruptcy Code, , the stay begins at the moment the bankruptcy petition is...

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Autrefois acquit --
Avulsion

Avulsion (legal term)

In real property law, avulsion refers to a sudden loss or addition to land, which results from the action of water. It differs from accretion, which describes a gradual loss or addition to land resulting from the action of water.-Avulsion and riparian owners:...

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Award

Award

An award is something given to a person or a group of people to recognize excellence in a certain field; a certificate of excellence. Awards are often signifiedby trophies, titles, certificates, commemorative plaques, medals, badges, pins, or ribbons...

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Ayatollah

Ayatollah

Ayatollah is a high ranking title given to Usuli Twelver Shī‘ah clerics. Those who carry the title are experts in Islamic studies such as jurisprudence, ethics, and philosophy and usually teach in Islamic seminaries. The next lower clerical rank is Hojatoleslam wal-muslemin...

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B

B.C.L. --
Babylonian law

Babylonian law

Archaeological material for the study of Babylonian law is singularly extensive. So-called "contracts" exist in the thousands, including a great variety of deeds, conveyances, bonds, receipts, accounts, and most important of all, actual legal decisions given by the judges in the law courts...

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Bachelor of Civil Law

Bachelor of Civil Law

Bachelor of Civil Law is the name of various degrees in law conferred by English-language universities. Historically, it originated as a postgraduate degree in the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, but many universities now offer the BCL as an undergraduate degree...

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Bachelor of Laws

Bachelor of Laws

The Bachelor of Laws is an undergraduate, or bachelor, degree in law originating in England and offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree...

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Bachelor of Legal Letters --
Back-to-back life sentences

Back-to-back life sentences

In judicial practice, back-to-back life sentences are two consecutive life sentences given to a felon. This penalty is typically used to prevent the felon from ever getting released from prison....

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Bad debt

Bad debt

A bad debt is an amount that is written off by the business as a loss to the business and classified as an expense because the debt owed to the business is unable to be collected, and all reasonable efforts have been exhausted to collect the amount owed...

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Bad faith

Bad faith

Bad faith is double mindedness or double heartedness in duplicity, fraud, or deception. It may involve intentional deceit of others, or self deception....

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Bail

Bail

Traditionally, bail is some form of property deposited or pledged to a court to persuade it to release a suspect from jail, on the understanding that the suspect will return for trial or forfeit the bail...

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Bail bond --
Bail bondsman

Bail bondsman

A bail bond agent, or bondsman, is any person or corporation that will act as a surety and pledge money or property as bail for the appearance of persons accused in court...

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Bail schedule --
Bailee --
Bailiff

Bailiff

A bailiff is a governor or custodian ; a legal officer to whom some degree of authority, care or jurisdiction is committed...

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Bailment

Bailment

Bailment describes a legal relationship in common law where physical possession of personal property, or chattel, is transferred from one person to another person who subsequently has possession of the property...

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Bailer

Bailer

A bailer in hydrogeology is a hollow tube used to retrieve groundwater samples from monitoring wells. Groundwater monitoring wells are drilled in areas where there are underground storage tanks or where there is environmental remediation occurring. The wells are typically built out of PVC casing...

/Bailor --
Bait and switch

Bait and switch

Bait-and-switch is a form of fraud, most commonly used in retail sales but also applicable to other contexts. First, customers are "baited" by advertising for a product or service at a low price; second, the customers discover that the advertised good is not available and are "switched" to a...

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Balance due --
Balance sheet

Balance sheet

In financial accounting, a balance sheet or statement of financial position is a summary of the financial balances of a sole proprietorship, a business partnership or a company. Assets, liabilities and ownership equity are listed as of a specific date, such as the end of its financial year. A...

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Ban --
Bank

Bank

A bank is a financial institution that serves as a financial intermediary. The term "bank" may refer to one of several related types of entities:...

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Bankrupt --
Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....

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Bankruptcy court --
Bankruptcy proceedings --
Bankruptcy remote

Bankruptcy remote

Bankruptcy remote is a term that describes the relative position of one company as it relates to bankruptcy vis-a-vis others within a corporate group, whereby the insolvency of the bankruptcy remote entity has as little economic impact as possible on other entities within the group...

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Bar

Bar (law)

Bar in a legal context has three possible meanings: the division of a courtroom between its working and public areas; the process of qualifying to practice law; and the legal profession.-Courtroom division:...

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Bar association

Bar association

A bar association is a professional body of lawyers. Some bar associations are responsible for the regulation of the legal profession in their jurisdiction; others are professional organizations dedicated to serving their members; in many cases, they are both...

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Bar council

Bar council

A bar council , in a Commonwealth country and in the Republic of Ireland, the Bar Council of Ireland is a professional body that regulates the profession of barristers together with the King's Inns. Solicitors are generally regulated by the Law society....

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Bar examination

Bar examination

A bar examination is an examination conducted at regular intervals to determine whether a candidate is qualified to practice law in a given jurisdiction.-Brazil:...

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Bare trust

Bare trust

A bare trust is a trust in which the beneficiary has a right to both income and capital and may call for both to be remitted into his own name. He is also entitled to take actual ownership and control of the trust property...

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Bargain and sale deed

Bargain and sale deed

A bargain and sale deed is in United States real property law, a deed "conveying real property without covenants".This is a deed "for which the grantor implies to have or have had an interest in the property but offers no warranties of title to the grantee...

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Barratry

Barratry

Barratry is the name of four legal concepts, three in criminal and civil law, and one in admiralty law.* Barratry, in criminal and civil law, is the act or practice of bringing repeated legal actions solely to harass...

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Barrister

Barrister

A barrister is a member of one of the two classes of lawyer found in many common law jurisdictions with split legal professions. Barristers specialise in courtroom advocacy, drafting legal pleadings and giving expert legal opinions...

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Basic Law of various jurisdictions

Basic Law

The term basic law is used in some places as an alternative to "constitution", implying it is a temporary but necessary measure without formal enactment of constitution. A basic law is either a codified constitution, or in countries with uncodified constitutions, a law given to have constitution...

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Battery

Battery (crime)

Battery is a criminal offense involving unlawful physical contact, distinct from assault which is the fear of such contact.In the United States, criminal battery, or simply battery, is the use of force against another, resulting in harmful or offensive contact...

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Beach bum trust provision

Beach bum trust provision

A beach bum trust provision, in the law of trusts, ties the ability of a trust beneficiary to take from the trust to the beneficiary's own earnings. Such a provision serves to prevent a beneficiary from lazily living off the trust funds . If the beneficiary earns no income, then he reaps nothing...

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Bearer paper --
Belief

Belief

Belief is the psychological state in which an individual holds a proposition or premise to be true.-Belief, knowledge and epistemology:The terms belief and knowledge are used differently in philosophy....

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Bench

Bench (law)

Bench in legal contexts means simply the location in a courtroom where a judge sits. The historical roots of that meaning come from the fact that judges formerly sat on long seats or benches when presiding over a court...

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Bench memorandum

Bench memorandum

A Bench Memorandum is a short and neutral memo which summarizes the facts, issues, and arguments of a court case...

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Bench trial

Bench trial

A bench trial is a trial held before a judge sitting without a jury. The term is chiefly used in common law jurisdictions to describe exceptions from jury trial, as most other legal systems do not use juries to any great extent....

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Bench warrant --
Beneficial interest

Beneficial interest

A beneficial interest is "that right which a person has in a contract made with another" person. The typical example is "if A makes a contract with B that he will pay C a certain sum of money, B has the legal interest in the contract, and C the beneficial interest." More generally, a beneficial...

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Beneficial use

Beneficial use

Beneficial use is a legal term describing a person's right to enjoy the benefits of specific property, especially a view or access to light, air, or water, even though title to that property is held by another person. This may also be termed "beneficial enjoyment". Black's Law Dictionary...

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Beneficiary

Beneficiary

A beneficiary in the broadest sense is a natural person or other legal entity who receives money or other benefits from a benefactor. For example: The beneficiary of a life insurance policy, is the person who receives the payment of the amount of insurance after the death of the insured...

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Beneficiary (trust)

Beneficiary (trust)

In trust law, a beneficiary or cestui que use, a.k.a. cestui que trust, is the person or persons who are entitled to the benefit of any trust arrangement. A beneficiary will normally be a natural person, but it is perfectly possible to have a company as the beneficiary of a trust, and this often...

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Benefit of counsel --
Bequeath --
Bequest

Bequest

A bequest is the act of giving property by will. Strictly, "bequest" is used of personal property, and "devise" of real property. In legal terminology, "bequeath" is a verb form meaning "to make a bequest."...

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Berne three-step test

Berne three-step test

The Berne three-step test is a clause that is included in several international treaties on intellectual property. It imposes on signatories to the treaties constraints on the possible limitations and exceptions to exclusive rights under national copyright laws.- Berne Convention :The three-step...

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Best evidence rule

Best evidence rule

The best evidence rule is a common law rule of evidence which can be traced back at least as far as the 18th century. In Omychund v Barker 1 Atk, 21, 49; 26 ER 15, 33, Lord Harwicke stated that no evidence was admissible unless it was "the best that the nature of the case will allow"...

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Best Interests of the Child

Best interests

Best interests or best interests of the child is the doctrine used by most courts to determine a wide range of issues relating to the well-being of children. The most important of these issues concern questions that arise upon the divorce or separation of the children's parents...

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Bestiality --
Beyond a reasonable doubt

Beyond a Reasonable Doubt

Beyond a Reasonable Doubt is a 1956 film directed by Fritz Lang and written by Douglas Morrow. The film, considered film noir, was the last American film directed by Lang.-Plot:...

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BFP

Bona fide purchaser

A bona fide purchaser referred to more completely as a bona fide purchaser for value without notice is a term used in the law of real property and personal property to refer to an innocent party who purchases property without notice of any other party's claim to the title of that property...

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Bias

Bias

Bias is an inclination to present or hold a partial perspective at the expense of alternatives. Bias can come in many forms.-In judgement and decision making:...

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Biculturalism

Biculturalism

Biculturalism in sociology involves two originally distinct cultures in some form of co-existence.A policy recognizing, fostering or encouraging biculturalism typically emerges in countries that have emerged from a history of national or ethnic conflict in which neither side has gained complete...

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Bid --
Bifurcate --
Bifurcation --
Bigamy

Bigamy

In cultures that practice marital monogamy, bigamy is the act of entering into a marriage with one person while still legally married to another. Bigamy is a crime in most western countries, and when it occurs in this context often neither the first nor second spouse is aware of the other...

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Bilateral contract --
Bill

Bill (proposed law)

A bill is a proposed law under consideration by a legislature. A bill does not become law until it is passed by the legislature and, in most cases, approved by the executive. Once a bill has been enacted into law, it is called an act or a statute....

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Bill of attainder

Bill of attainder

A bill of attainder is an act of a legislature declaring a person or group of persons guilty of some crime and punishing them without benefit of a judicial trial.-English law:...

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Bill of costs

Bill of costs

A bill of costs is an itemized list what expenses a prevailing party in a lawsuit or action needs to pay for services procured from a lawyer. It can have varying levels of detail, and should describe the nature of the work done by the lawyer for the client, and any other expenses incurred...

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Bill of exchange --
Bill of indictment --
Bill of lading

Bill of lading

A bill of lading is a document issued by a carrier to a shipper, acknowledging that specified goods have been received on board as cargo for conveyance to a named place for delivery to the consignee who is usually identified...

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Bill of particulars

Bill of Particulars

In law, a bill of particulars is a detailed, formal, written statement of charges or claims by a plaintiff or the prosecutor given upon the defendant's formal request to the court for more detailed information...

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Bill of rights

Bill of rights

A bill of rights is a list of the most important rights of the citizens of a country. The purpose of these bills is to protect those rights against infringement. The term "bill of rights" originates from England, where it referred to the Bill of Rights 1689. Bills of rights may be entrenched or...

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Bill of sale

Bill of sale

A bill of sale is a legal document made by a 'seller' to a purchaser, reporting that on a specific date, at a specific locality, and for a particular sum of money or other "value received", the seller sold to the purchaser a specific item of personal, or parcel of real, property of which he had...

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Bind over

Bind over

Bind over, binding over order or bind over for sentence is a legal term relating to a power exercised by magistrates in England and Wales and in other common law jurisdictions such as Hong Kong....

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Bind over for sentence --
Binder

Binder (disambiguation)

Binder may refer to:* Binder , a material used to bind other materials together* Binder , center leaves rolled inside a cigar which are used to bind together fillers within a wrapper...

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Binding arbitration --
Bioethics

Bioethics

Bioethics is the study of controversial ethics brought about by advances in biology and medicine. Bioethicists are concerned with the ethical questions that arise in the relationships among life sciences, biotechnology, medicine, politics, law, and philosophy....

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Black's Law Dictionary

Black's Law Dictionary

Black's Law Dictionary is the most widely used law dictionary in the United States. It was founded by Henry Campbell Black. It is the reference of choice for definitions in legal briefs and court opinions and has been cited as a secondary legal authority in many U.S...

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Blackmail

Blackmail

In common usage, blackmail is a crime involving threats to reveal substantially true or false information about a person to the public, a family member, or associates unless a demand is met. It may be defined as coercion involving threats of physical harm, threat of criminal prosecution, or threats...

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Blank endorsement

Blank endorsement

Blank endorsement of a financial instrument such as a check is only a signature, not indicating the payee. The effect of this is that it is payable only to the bearer – legally, it transforms an order instrument into a bearer instrument...

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Blood libel

Blood libel

Blood libel is a false accusation or claim that religious minorities, usually Jews, murder children to use their blood in certain aspects of their religious rituals and holidays...

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Blue law

Blue law

A blue law is a type of law, typically found in the United States and, formerly, in Canada, designed to enforce religious standards, particularly the observance of Sunday as a day of worship or rest, and a restriction on Sunday shopping...

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Blue laws

Blue Laws

The Blue Laws of the Colony of Connecticut, as distinct from the generic term "blue law" that refers to any laws regulating activities on Sunday, were the initial statutes set up by the Gov. Theophilus Eaton with the assistance of the Rev. John Cotton in 1655 for the Colony of New Haven, now part...

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Blue ribbon jury --
Blue Sky Laws --
Bluebook

Bluebook

The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation, a style guide, prescribes the most widely used legal citation system in the United States. The Bluebook is compiled by the Harvard Law Review Association, the Columbia Law Review, the University of Pennsylvania Law Review, and the Yale Law Journal....

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Board of directors

Board of directors

A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...

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bona fide

Bona Fide

Bona Fide is a studio album from rock band Wishbone Ash. It is the first studio album in six years and is the only studio album to feature guitarist Ben Granfelt...

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Bona fide purchaser

Bona fide purchaser

A bona fide purchaser referred to more completely as a bona fide purchaser for value without notice is a term used in the law of real property and personal property to refer to an innocent party who purchases property without notice of any other party's claim to the title of that property...

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bona vacantia

Bona vacantia

Bona vacantia is a legal concept associated with property that has no owner. It exists in various jurisdictions, with consequently varying application, but with origins mostly in English law.-Canada:...

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Bond

Surety bond

A surety bond is a promise to pay one party a certain amount if a second party fails to meet some obligation, such as fulfilling the terms of a contract...

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Bond for deed

Bond for deed

A bond for deed is a contract to sell real property in which the purchase price is to be paid by the buyer to the seller in installments and in which the seller, after payment of a stipulated sum, agrees to deliver title to the buyer. It may also be called a "contract for deed" or a "Land...

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Booby trap

Booby trap

A booby trap is a device designed to harm or surprise a person, unknowingly triggered by the presence or actions of the victim. As the word trap implies, they often have some form of bait designed to lure the victim towards it. However, in other cases the device is placed on busy roads or is...

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Book account --
Book value

Book value

In accounting, book value or carrying value is the value of an asset according to its balance sheet account balance. For assets, the value is based on the original cost of the asset less any depreciation, amortization or Impairment costs made against the asset. Traditionally, a company's book value...

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Bootleg recording

Bootleg recording

A bootleg recording is an audio or video recording of a performance that was not officially released by the artist or under other legal authority. The process of making and distributing such recordings is known as bootlegging...

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Border control

Border control

Border controls are measures used by a country to monitor or regulate its borders.The control of the flow of many people, animals and goods across a border may be controlled by government Customs services. Security is enforced by various kinds of Border Guards and Coast Guards...

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Bottomry

Bottomry

A bottomry, or bottomage, is when the master of a ship borrows money upon the bottom or keel of it, so as to forfeit the ship itself to the creditor, if the money is not paid at the time appointed with interest at the ship's safe return....

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Boycott

Boycott

A boycott is an act of voluntarily abstaining from using, buying, or dealing with a person, organization, or country as an expression of protest, usually for political reasons...

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Breach of contract

Breach of contract

Breach of contract is a legal cause of action in which a binding agreement or bargained-for exchange is not honored by one or more of the parties to the contract by non-performance or interference with the other party's performance....

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Breach of promise

Breach of promise

Breach of promise is a former common law tort.From at least medieval times until the early 20th century, a man's promise of engagement to marry a woman was considered, in many jurisdictions, a legally binding contract...

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Breach of the peace

Breach of the peace

Breach of the peace is a legal term used in constitutional law in English-speaking countries, and in a wider public order sense in Britain.-Constitutional law:...

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Breach of warranty --
Breaking and entering

Burglary

Burglary is a crime, the essence of which is illicit entry into a building for the purposes of committing an offense. Usually that offense will be theft, but most jurisdictions specify others which fall within the ambit of burglary...

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Bribery

Bribery

Bribery, a form of corruption, is an act implying money or gift giving that alters the behavior of the recipient. Bribery constitutes a crime and is defined by Black's Law Dictionary as the offering, giving, receiving, or soliciting of any item of value to influence the actions of an official or...

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Bride price

Bride price

Bride price, also known as bride wealth, is an amount of money or property or wealth paid by the groom or his family to the parents of a woman upon the marriage of their daughter to the groom...

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Brief

Brief (law)

A brief is a written legal document used in various legal adversarial systems that is presented to a court arguing why the party to the case should prevail....

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British constitution --
British constitutional law --
British nationality law

British nationality law

British nationality law is the law of the United Kingdom that concerns citizenship and other categories of British nationality. The law is complex because of the United Kingdom's former status as an imperial power.-History:...

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Broker

Broker

A broker is a party that arranges transactions between a buyer and a seller, and gets a commission when the deal is executed. A broker who also acts as a seller or as a buyer becomes a principal party to the deal...

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Brought to trial

Brought to trial

Brought to trial means to calendar a legal case for a hearing, or to bring a defendant to the bar of justice. The simplest definition is "the commencement of the trial in a court by formally calling and swearing in of the witnesses to initiate the trial proceedings." However, much like Pro-rata,...

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Building and loan --
Bulk sale

Bulk sale

A bulk sale, sometimes called a bulk transfer, is a sale of goods by a business that represents all or substantially all of its inventory to a single buyer unless such a sale would be common in the ordinary course of its business...

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Bulk sales acts --
Bulk transfer --
Burden --
Burden of proof --
Burgage

Burgage

Burgage is a medieval land term used in England and Scotland, well established by the 13th century. A burgage was a town rental property , owned by a king or lord. The property usually, and distinctly, consisted of a house on a long and narrow plot of land, with the narrow end facing the street...

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Burglary

Burglary

Burglary is a crime, the essence of which is illicit entry into a building for the purposes of committing an offense. Usually that offense will be theft, but most jurisdictions specify others which fall within the ambit of burglary...

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Business

Business

A business is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit...

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Business ethics

Business ethics

Business ethics is a form of applied ethics or professional ethics that examines ethical principles and moral or ethical problems that arise in a business environment. It applies to all aspects of business conduct and is relevant to the conduct of individuals and entire organizations.Business...

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Business invitee --
But for rule --
Buy-sell agreement

Buy-sell agreement

A buy–sell agreement, also known as a buyout agreement, is a binding agreement between co-owners of a business that governs what happens if a co-owner dies or is otherwise forced to leave the business, or chooses to leave the business. It may be thought of as a sort of premarital agreement between...

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Bylaw

Bylaw

By-law can refer to a law of local or limited application passed under the authority of a higher law specifying what things may be regulated by the by-law...

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Bylaws --
Bypass trust

Bypass trust

In the United States, a bypass trust is an irrevocable trust into which the settlor deposits assets and which is designed to pay trust income and principal to an individual's spouse for the duration of their life...

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Bypassing law

C

C.I.F. --
Cadastral map --
cadit quaestio --
Calendar

Calendar

A calendar is a system of organizing days for social, religious, commercial, or administrative purposes. This is done by giving names to periods of time, typically days, weeks, months, and years. The name given to each day is known as a date. Periods in a calendar are usually, though not...

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Calendar call

Calendar call

A calendar call is an occasion where a court requires attorneys representing different matters to appear before the court so that trials and other proceedings before the court can be scheduled so as not to conflict with one another...

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Caliphate

Caliphate

The term caliphate, "dominion of a caliph " , refers to the first system of government established in Islam and represented the political unity of the Muslim Ummah...

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Call --
Call to the bar

Call to the bar

The Call to the Bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party, and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received a "call to the bar"...

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Calumny --
Campaign finance reform

Campaign finance reform

Campaign finance reform is the common term for the political effort in the United States to change the involvement of money in politics, primarily in political campaigns....

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Canadian Bill of Rights

Canadian Bill of Rights

The Canadian Bill of Rights is a federal statute and bill of rights enacted by Prime Minister John Diefenbaker's government on August 10, 1960. It provides Canadians with certain quasi-constitutional rights in relation to other federal statutes...

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Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms

The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is a bill of rights entrenched in the Constitution of Canada. It forms the first part of the Constitution Act, 1982...

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Cancellation --
Caning

Caning

Caning is a form of corporal punishment consisting of a number of hits with a single cane usually made of rattan, generally applied to the offender's bare or clothed buttocks or hand . Application of a cane to the knuckles or the shoulders has been much less common...

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