c

ʑ c

A cash compensation ordered by a court to offset losses or suffering caused by

another's fault or negligence. Damages are a typical request made of a court when
persons sue for breach of contract or tort

ʑ cDear Colleague Letter

ʑ c

Latin: as a matter of fact; something which, while not necessarily lawful or
legally sanctified, exists in fact. A common law spouse may be referred to a de facto wife
or de facto husband: although not legally married, they live and carry-on their lives as if
married. A de facto government is one which has seized power by force or in any other
unconstitutional method and governs in spite of the existence of a de jure government.

ʑ c Latin: "of the law." The term has come to describe a total adherence of the law.
For example, a de jure government is one which has been created in respect of
constitutional law and is in all ways legitimate even though a de facto government may
be in control.

ʑ c  

Latin: a common law principle whereby judges will not sit in
judgement of extremely minor transgressions of the law. It has been restated as "the law
does not concern itself with trifles".

ʑ c Latin: new. This term is used to refer to a trial which starts over, which wipes
the slate clean and begins all over again, as if any previous partial or complete hearing
had not occurred.

ʑ c
 
Also known as capital punishment, this is the most severe form of
corporal punishment as it is requires law enforcement officers to kill the offender. Forms
of the death penalty include hanging from the neck, gassing, firing squad and has
included use of the guillotine

ʑ cA person who owes money, goods or services to another, the latter being referred
to as the creditor.

ʑ c


The act of beheading a person, usually instantly such as with a large and
heavy knife or by guillotine, as a form of capital punishment. This form of capital
punishment is still in use in some Arab countries, notably Saudi Arabia.

ʑ c

The name given to the final and conclusive court order after the
condition of a decree nisi is met.
ʑ c
 A provisional decision of a court which does not have force or effect until a
certain condition is met such as another petition brought before the court or after the
passage of a period time, after which it is called a decree absolute. Although no longer
required in many jurisdictions, this was the model for divorce procedures wherein a court
would issue A decree nisi, which would have no force or effect until a period of time
passed (30 days or 6 months).

ʑ cA written and signed document which sets out the things that have to be done or
recognitions of the parties towards a certain object. Under older common law, a deed had
to be sealed; that is, accompanied not only by a signature but with an impression on wax
onto the document. The word deed is also most commonly used in the context of real
estate because these transactions must usually be signed and in writing.

ʑ cTo accept a document or an event as conclusive of a certain status in the absence

of evidence or facts which would normally be required to prove that status. For example,
in matters of child support, a decision of a foreign court could be "deemed" to be a
decision of the court of another for the purpose of enforcement

ʑ c


Œ. Defaulting on a debt or other obligation such to account for public or trust
funds. Usually used in the context of public officials. 2. Defalcation has another legal
meaning referring to the setting-off of two debts owed between two people by the
agreement to a new amount representing the balance. I owe you $7 and you owe me $3;
we agree to "defalk"; the result is that I owe you $4. This is a type of novation

ʑ c

An attack on the good reputation of a person, by slander or libel.

ʑ c
failure of a defendant to appear, or file an answer or response in a civil case,

after having been served with a summons and complaint

ʑ c
 decision made by the court when the defendant fails to respond

ʑ c 


A side-contract which contains a condition which, if realized, could defeat
the main contract. The common English usage of the word "defeasance" has also become
acceptable in law, referring to a contract that is susceptible to being declared void as in
"immoral contracts are susceptible to defeasance."

ʑ c 
person against whom a civil or criminal proceeding is begun

ʑ cFrench for outside. In the context of legal proceedings, it refers to that which is
irrelevant or outside the scope of the debate.

ʑ c
  
-ne of the pivotal principles of administrative law: that a

delegate cannot delegate. In other words, a person to whom an authority or decision-
making power has been delegated to from a higher source, cannot, in turn, delegate again
to another, unless the original delegation explicitly authorized it.
ʑ c
 A letter from a lawyer, on behalf of a client, that demands payment or
some other action, which is in default. Demand letters are not always prerequisites for a
legal suit but there are exceptions such as legal action on promissory notes or if the
contract requires it. Basically, a demand letter sets out why the payment or action is
claimed, how it should be carried out (eg. payment in full), directions for the reply and a
deadline for the reply. Demand letters are often used in business contexts because they
are a courtesy attempt to maintain some goodwill between business parties and they often
prompt payment, avoiding expensive litigation. A demand letter often contains the
"threat" that if it is not adhered to, the next communication between the parties will be
through a court of law in the form of formal legal action.

ʑ c

A word coined by the diplomatic community and referring to a strongly
worded warning by one country to another and often, either explicitly or implicitly, with
the threat of military consequence. Demarches are often precursors to hostilities or war.
In September, Π6, for example, US President Clinton issued a demarche to Iraqi
President Saddam Hussein when intelligence reports showed troops massing along the
border of Kurd communities.

ʑ cThis is a motion put to a trial judge after the plaintiff has completed his or her
case, in which the defendant, while not objecting to the facts presented, and rather than
responding by a full defence, asks the court to reject the petition right then and there
because of a lack of basis in law or insufficiency of the evidence. This motion has been
been abolished in many states and, instead, any such arguments are to be made while
presenting a regular defence to the petition.

ʑ c
The removal of a foreign national under immigration laws for reasons such
as illegal entry or conduct dangerous to the public welfare. The grounds for deportation
varies from country to country.

ʑ cThe official statement by a witness taken in writing (as opposed to testimony
which where a witnesses give their perception of the facts verbally). Affidavits are the
most common kind of depositions.

ʑ c

Those person who are born of, or from children of, another are called that
person's descendants. Grandchildren are descendants of their grandfather as children are
descendants of their natural parents. The law also distinguishes between collateral
descendants and lineal descendants.

ʑ cA common law action similar to conversion and also involving the possession of
property by the defendant but belonging to the plaintiff but in which the plaintiff asks the
court for the return of the property, although the plaintiff may also ask for damages for
the duration of the possession.
ʑ c

Latin for "he has wasted." This is the technical word referring to a personal
representative who has mismanaged the estate and allowed an avoidable loss to occur.
This action opens the personal representative to personal liability for the loss.

ʑ cThe transfer or conveyance of real property by will.

ʑ cUnited States Department of Health and Human Services

ʑ c

 
Latin: an observation by a judge on a matter not specifically before the
court or not necessary in determining the issue before the court; a side opinion which
does not form part of the judgment for the purposes of stare decisis. May also be called
"obiter dictum."

ʑ c
An official representative of a state, present in another state for the purposes of
general representation of the state-of-origin or for the purpose of specific international
negotiations on behalf of the diplomat's state-of-origin.

ʑ c

 A trust in which the settlor has given the trustee full discretion to
decide which (and when) members of a group of beneficiaries is to receive either the
income or the capital of the trust.

ʑ c

the area of law dealing with unfair or unequal treatment of a person or
persons based upon their belonging to a protected class.

ʑ c
A term of maritime law where an officer or other seaman is either demoted in
rank or deprived of a promotion.

ʑ cTo disagree. The word is used in legal circles to refer to the minority opinion of
a judge which runs contrary to the conclusions of the majority.

ʑ cThe act of ending, terminating or winding-up a company or state of affairs.

For example, when the life of a company is ended by normal legal means, it is said to be
"dissolved". The same is said of marriage or partnerships which, by dissolution, ends the
legal relationship between those persons formally joined by the marriage or partnership.

ʑ c
The right of a landlord to seize the property of a tenant which is in the premises
being rented, as collateral against a tenant that has not paid the rent or has otherwise
defaulted on the lease, such as wanton disrepair or destruction of the premises. A
common way to "distrain" against a tenant is by changing locks and giving notice to the
tenant. A legal action to reclaim goods that have been distrained is called replevin.

ʑ cA proportionate distribution of profits made in the form of a money payment to

shareholders, by a for-profit corporation. Dividends are declared by a company's board of
directors.
ʑ c
The final, legal ending of a marriage, by Court order.

ʑ cAbbreviation for deoxyribonucleic acid. A chromosome molecule which carries

genetic coding unique to each person with the only exception of identical twins (that is
why it is also called "DNA fingerprinting"). Through laboratory process, DNA can be
extracted from body tissue such a strand of hair, semen, blood and matched against DNA
discovered at a crime scene or on a victim to scientifically implicate an accused. Can also
be used to match DNA between parents in a paternity suit.

ʑ c Date of Birth

ʑ c
!An official court record book which lists all the cases before the court and which
may also note the status or action required for each case.

ʑ c
A rule or principle or the law established through the repeated application of
legal precedents.

ʑ c
The permanent residence of a person; a place to which, even if he or she were
temporary absence, they intend to return. In law, it is said that a person may have many
residences but only one domicile.

ʑ c
 Used when referring to easements to specify that property (i.e.
tenement) or piece of land that benefits from, or has the advantage of, an easement.

ʑ c 
Latin: the qualified ownership of a landlord, not having possession
or use of property but retaining ownership. Used in feudal English land systems to
describe the King's ownership of all the land, even though most of it was lent out to lords
for their exclusive use and enjoyment.

ʑ c Latin: the property rights of a tenant. While not owning the property in a
legal sense, the tenant, as having dominion utile, enjoys full and exclusive possession and
use of the property.

ʑ c
 


A death-bed gift, made by a dying person, with the intent that the
person receiving the gift shall keep the thing if death ensues. Such a gift is exempted
from the estate of the deceased as property is automatically conveyed upon death. In most
jurisdictions, real property cannot be transferred by these death-bed gifts.

ʑ cAnother word to describe the beneficiary of a trust. Also used to describe the
person who is the recipient of a power of attorney; the person who would have to exercise
the power of attorney.

ʑ cThe person who donates property to the benefit of another, usually through the
legal mechanism of a trust. The law books of some countries refer to the trust donor as a
"settlor." Also used to describe the person who signs a power of attorney.
ʑ c
 


Drugs and Narcotics - the area of the law dealing with the defense
of criminal proceedings involving the use and/or sale of illegal substances.

ʑ c! c c the "right to drive" is a privilege which is governed by the

individual states. Traffic violations are a mix of regulatory and penal (criminal) offenses
based on violations of state statutes and city ordinances relating to the operation of
vehicles, specifically driving under the influence of alcohol or other substances that
impair the ability to drive.

ʑ c

Latin: bring with you. Used most frequently for a species of subpoena (as in
"subpoena ducestecum") which seeks not so much the appearance of a person before a
court of law, but the surrender of a thing (eg. a document or some other evidence) by its
holder, to the court, to serve as evidence in a trial.

ʑ c 
A term of US law which refers to fundamental procedural legal safeguards
of which every citizen has an absolute right when a state or court purports to take a
decision that could affect any right of that citizen. The most basic right protected under
the due process doctrine is the right to be given notice, and an opportunity to be heard.
The term is now also in use in other countries, again to refer to basic fundamantal legal
rights such as the right to be heard.

ʑ c


Latin: for so long as she remains chaste. Separation agreements years ago
used to contain dumcasta clauses which said that if the women were to start another
relationship, she forfeited her entitlement to maintenance.

ʑ c 
Latin: for so long as she remains unmarried.

ʑ c 
Latin: for so long as she remains a widow.

ʑ cA house which has separate but complete facilities to accommodate two families
as either adjacent units or one on top of the other.

ʑ cWhere a person is prevented from acting (or not acting) according to their free
will, by threats or force of another, it is said to be "under duress". Contracts signed under
duress are voidable and, in may places, you cannot be convicted of a crime if you can
prove that you were forced or threatened into committing the crime (although this
defence may not be available for serious crimes).