Glossary of Legal Terms & Definitions
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- Acquittal An acquittal is a jury’s verdict that a criminal defendant is found not guilty, or the finding of a judge that the evidence is insufficient to support a conviction, thus dismissing the criminal case completely.
- Adjudication An adjudication is the final binding decision by a judge or other trier of fact after they have heard the opposing party’s arguments, which determines each parties rights and obligations.
- Administrative Agency An administrative agency is a branch of the federal or state government that administers and enforces laws pertaining to specific areas, such as the IRS with taxes.
- Admiralty Law Admiralty law is the collection of regulations and laws that oversee the transportation of persons or property by sea.
- Admissible Admissible refers to evidence that a judge or jury may consider at trial in civil and criminal cases because it is deemed reliable and relevant to resolving the issue.
- Affidavit An affidavit is a voluntary written or printed statement of fact confirmed by the person making it, either by notarization or administered by an authorized officer of the court.
- Affirmed A judgment is affirmed when a party appeals an adjudication to an appellate court and it determines the judgment was correctly made.
- Alimony Alimony is the financial obligation one spouse must pay to the other to help support them after a divorce or separation.
- Allegation An allegation is a party’s statement of what they think happened and what they hope to prove moving forward in a case.
- Alternative Dispute Resolution Alternative dispute resolution is when the parties to a dispute can resolve the problem without having to appear for a trial in front of a judge or jury. The most common methods are mediation and arbitration.
- Amicus Curiae An amicus curiae is a party not directly involved in a case that may provide information or evidence to the court to help clear up a matter of law or inform the court of their position on the matter. In Latin amicus curiae means “a friend of the court.”
- Annulment An annulment is a determination by the court that at the time of marriage there was some issue or error preventing a legal marriage from being established, thus the parties were never legally married.
- Answer Refers to the written response of a person being accused in a civil case admitting or denying the allegations made against them and providing any defenses they may have.
- Antenuptial An antenuptial, also known as a prenup, is an agreement made before marriage which indicates how each party would like to divide property or assets if they divorce or one party dies. Do not confuse this with a will or trust, which is an agreement made during marriage on how property or(...)
- Appeal An appeal is a request made by a party who disagrees with the final ruling after trial and wants a supervisory court to review the trial to overturn the decision.
- Appearance An appearance is when a party consents to the court’s jurisdiction by appearing in the case either on their own behalf or through an attorney to make their case.
- Appellate court An appellate court reviews the procedure and judgment of a lower court when a party appeals the final decision.
- Arbitration An arbitration is a form of alternative dispute resolution where an arbitrator will act like a judge, hear both sides of the dispute and make a decision. There are two forms of arbitration: binding voluntary arbitration (cannot appeal decision) and mandatory non-binding arbitration (can(...)
- Arbitrator An arbitrator is a disinterested person, usually an attorney, selected by the parties to an arbitration or by the court to hear the case and make a determination based on the evidence without having a formal trial.
- Arraignment An arraignment is the first appearance with a judge in a criminal case where the charges against the defendant are read and a defendant is asked to plea guilty or not guilty. Release conditions may be set at this time.
- Arrears Arrears are money that is overdue to be paid; typically refers to child support or alimony that has not been paid on time.
- Articles of Incorporation Articles of incorporation are documents that are required to be filed with the state to incorporate a business. Typically, they include general information about the company, including name, address, and purpose. Many states have websites where you can develop and submit these documents(...)