Common Legal Terms terms starting with E

52 terms

  1. E pluribus unum One out of many; one composed of many (the motto of the United States, one government formed of many states).
  2. Emeritus Retired from official active duties.
  3. Eminent Domain When a government takes private property for public use. The owner receives payment for its fair market value.
  4. en banc "In the bench" or "full bench." Refers to court sessions with the entire membership of a court participating rather than the usual quorum. U.S.
  5. Encyclopedia A book or series of books arranged alphabetically by topics containing information on specific areas of law.
  6. Enjoining An order by the court telling a person to stop performing a specific act.
  7. entity A legally recognized organization.
  8. Entrapment The act of inducing a person to commit a crime so that a criminal charge will be brought against him.
  9. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was established as an independent agency on December 2, 1970 during President Nixon's term in office.
  10. Eo ipso By the thing itself.
  11. Equal Protection of the Law The guarantee in the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution that all persons be treated equally by the law.
  12. equitable Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could…
  13. Equity Another word for "stock." It represents an ownership interest by shareholders in a corporation.
  14. Erratum (Pl. errata) Error made in printing.
  15. Escheat Reversion of real or personal property to the State when 1) a person dies without leaving a will and has no heirs, or 2) when the property (such as a bank…
  16. Escrow A financial instrument held by a third party on behalf of the other two parties in a transaction.
  17. Esprit de corps The spirit which animates a collective body, as of the army or the bar.
  18. Esquire In the United States the title commonly appended after the name of an attorney. Abbreviated: Esq.
  19. Esse To be.
  20. Estate Your estate is what you leave behind, financially speaking, when you die. To figure its worth, your assets are valued to determine your gross estate.
  21. Estate tax Your estate owes federal estate tax on the value of your taxable estate if the estate is larger than the amount you are permitted to leave to your heirs…
  22. Estoppel An impediment that prevents a person from asserting or doing something contrary to his own previous assertion or act.
  23. ET And; also.
  24. Et alii (Abbr. et al.) And others.
  25. Et sequentia (Abbr. et seq.) And as follows.
  26. Et uxor (Abbr. et ux.) And wife.
  27. Et vir And husband.
  28. Ethics Of or relating to moral action and conduct; professionally right; conforming to professional standards.
  29. Evidence (EV-uh-dins): Information that is collected in an orderly way about a disease or its treatment. This information often comes from research.
  30. Ex adverso From the opposite view.
  31. Ex cathedra From the bench; with high authority.
  32. Ex contractu From a contract.
  33. Ex curia Out of court.
  34. Ex dono By gift.
  35. Ex lege According to the law.
  36. Ex officio By virtue.
  37. Ex Parte An action (a conversation orally or in writing, a ruling, or a hearing) done without all parties being notified in advance or without their presence.
  38. Ex parte proceeding Actions taken by or orders made by a court upon the application or petition of one party without notice or hearing to other interested parties.
  39. Ex post facto After the act is done; after the fact.
  40. Ex proprio motu By his own motion.
  41. Ex relatione (Abbr. ex rel.) On the information of or on the relation of.
  42. Exceptions Declarations by either side in a civil or criminal case reserving the right to appeal a judge's ruling on a motion.
  43. Exclusionary Rule The rule preventing illegally obtained evidence from being used in any trial.
  44. Exculpatory Evidence Evidence which tends to show the defendant’s innocence.
  45. Execute To complete; to sign; to carry out according to its terms.
  46. Executor A person named in a will and approved by a probate court to administer the deposition of an estate in accordance with the instructions of the will.
  47. Exempt property Property of a debtor that the law protects from the action of creditors.
  48. Exhibit A document or other item introduced as evidence during a trial or hearing.
  49. Exonerate Removal of a charge, responsibility or duty.
  50. Expungement Expungement means sealing the public record of a court action. If your eviction is expunged, then someone searching court files cannot find a record of…
  51. Extenuating circumstances Circumstances which render a crime less aggravated, heinous or reprehensible than it would be otherwise.
  52. Extradition The surrender of an accused criminal by one state to the jurisdiction of another.