Common Legal Terms — page 5 of 9

Common Legal Terms terms

401. In medias res Into the midst of things.
402. In pari delicto Of equal fault or guilt.
403. In personam Against a certain person; against the person.
404. In propria persona Persons who present their own case without lawyers. See pro se.
405. In re In the matter of.
406. In rem Against the thing.
407. In situ (in si'too) the natural or normal place; confined to the site of origin without invasion or spread to neighboring tissues.
408. In toto The whole; entirely.
409. Inadmissible That which, under the rules of evidence, cannot be admitted or received as evidence.
410. Incapacity Lack of legal ability to act; disability, incompetence; lack of adequate power.
411. Incarceration Imprisonment in a jail, prison or penitentiary.
412. Incompetent One who lacks ability, legal qualification or fitness to manage his/her own affairs.
413. Inculpatory Evidence Evidence which tends to show the defendant’s guilt.
414. Indeterminate sentence A sentence of imprisonment to a specified minimum and maximum period of time, specifically authorized by statute, subject to termination by a parole board…
415. Indictment A written accusation by a grand jury charging a person with a felony. See information.
416. Indigent Needy or impoverished.
417. Infinito Perpetually; to infinity.
418. Information Accusatory document, filed by a prosecutor, detailing misdemeanor charges against a party.
419. Infra Beneath; below.
420. Infraction A violation of law not punishable by imprisonment. Minor traffic offenses generally are considered infractions.
421. Inheritance tax A tax on property that an heir or beneficiary under a will receives from a deceased person's estate. The heir or beneficiary pays this tax.
422. Initial appearance The first hearing in court before a referee/judge. This is similar to an arraignment hearing on criminal cases.
423. initial hearing Court proceeding in which the defendant learns of his rights and the charges against him and the judge decides bail.
424. Injunction An order or remedy issued by the court at the request of the complaining party, which forbids another party to do some act which he/she is threatening or…
425. Insolvent When the total debt of an entity is greater than all of its property.
426. Instructions Judge's explanation to the jury before it begins deliberations of the questions it must answer and the applicable law governing the case.
427. Intentional tort Wrong perpetrated by one who intends to break the law.
428. Inter alia Among other things.
429. Inter alios Among other persons.
430. Inter vivos Between living persons.
431. Interlocutory Temporary; provisional; interim; not final.
432. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) (IRS) The federal agency that collects income taxes in the United States.
433. Interrogatories A set or series of written questions propounded to a party, witness or other person having information or interest in a case; a discovery device.
434. Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) A federal agency which regulates all transportation in interstate commerce.
435. Intervention (IN-ter-VEN-shun) In medicine, a treatment or action taken to prevent or treat disease, or improve health in other ways.
436. interview A meeting with the police or prosecutor.
437. Involuntary bankruptcy A proceeding initiated by creditors requesting the bankruptcy court to place a debtor in liquidation.
438. Ipse He; himself.
439. Ipso facto By the act itself; or by the fact itself.
440. Ipso jure By the law itself.
441. Issue When a corporation offers a stock or bond for sale, or a government offers a bond, the security is known as an issue, and the company or government is the…
442. Joint and several liability A legal doctrine that makes each of the parties who are responsible for an injury, liable for all the damages awarded in a lawsuit if the other parties…
443. Joint tenancy See: tenancy.
444. judge An official with the authority and responsibility to preside in a court, try lawsuits and make legal rulings. Judges are attorneys.
445. Judgment A legal decision; when requiring debt repayment, a judgment may include a property lien that secures the creditor's claim by providing a collateral source.
446. Judgment as a matter of law In a case in which the plaintiff has failed to present on the facts of his case proper evidence for jury consideration, the trial judge may order the…
447. Judgment debtor One who owes money as a result of a judgment in favor of a creditor.
448. Judicial lien A lien created by order of a court, such as the lien of a judgment.
449. Judicial review The authority of a court to review the official actions of other branches of government.
450. Judiciary The branch of government invested with judicial power to interpret and apply the law; the court system; the body of judges.
451. Judicium Judgment.
452. Jurat Certificate of person and officer before whom a writing is sworn to.
453. Jurisdiction (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same…
454. Jurisdiction, Personal The power or authority of a court to hear and try a case with respect to an individual.
455. Jurisdiction, Subject Matter The power or authority of a court to hear and try a case.
456. jurisprudence The study of law and the structure of the legal system.
457. juror A person who is on the jury.
458. Jury A certain number of men and women selected according to law and sworn to try a question of fact or indict a person for public offense.
459. Jury Administrator The court officer responsible for choosing the panel of persons to serve as potential jurors for a particular court term.
460. jury instructions A judge's explanation to the jury before it begins deliberations of the questions it must answer and the law governing the case.
461. jury pool The group of people from which the actual jury is chosen. The jury pool is randomly selected from a source such as voter registration banks.
462. Jus civile Civil law.
463. Jus commune Common law.
464. Jus divinum Divine law.
465. Justiciable Issues and claims capable of being properly examined in court.
466. Key number system A research aid developed by West Publishing Company which classifies digests of cases into various law topics and subtopics which are given paragraph…
467. Lapsed gift A gift made in a will to a person who has died prior to the will-maker's death.
468. Larceny Obtaining property by fraud or deceit.
469. Law As used in the Texas Election Code, means a constitution, statute, city charter, or city ordinance.
470. Law Blank A printed legal form available for preparing documents.
471. Law Clerk A lawyer (or law school student) employed to do legal research.
472. law clerk (or staff attorney) Assist judges with research and drafting of opinions.
473. lawsuit An action or proceeding in a civil court; term used for a suit or action between two parties in a court of law.
474. Leading question A question that suggests the answer desired of the witness. A party generally may not ask one's own witness leading questions.
475. Legal aid Professional legal services available to persons or organizations unable to afford such services.
476. Legal process A formal paper that is legally valid; something issuing from the court, usually a command such as a writ or mandate.
477. Legal texts Books that cover specific areas of the law, usually dealing with a single topic.
478. Legislation The act of giving or enacting laws; the power to make laws via legislation in contrast to courtmade laws.
479. Legitimate That which is legal, lawful, recognized by law or according to law.
480. Leniency Recommendation for a sentence less than the maximum allowed.
481. Lex Law.
482. Lex domicili Law of the dominion.
483. Lex loci The law or custom of a place.
484. Lex scripta Law by statute.
485. Liable Responsible or answerable by law; legally obligated.
486. Libel Published defamation which tends to injure a person's reputation.
487. Liber Book; a book of records, as of deeds.
488. LIBRARIAN Meets the informational needs of the judges and lawyers.
489. Licensing boards State agencies created to regulate the issuance of licenses, i.e., to contractors, cosmetologists, realtors, etc.
490. Lien Legal claim against a property. Once the property is sold, the lien holder is then paid the amount that is owed.
491. Limine See "in limine" in Foreign Words Glossary.
492. Limited Jurisdiction Refers to courts that are limited in the types of criminal and civil cases they may hear.
493. Lis pendens A pending lawsuit.
494. Litigant A party to a lawsuit.
495. litigation A lawsuit; a legal action, including all proceedings therein.
496. Living trust A trust set up and in effect during the lifetime of the grantor. (Also called inter vivos trust.)
497. locus (LOH-kuss) Specific place where something is located or occurs. It may refer to a specific place on the body (such as an acupuncture point) or the place…
498. Locus sigilli (Abbr. L.S.) The place of the seal.
499. Loose-leaf services Loose-leaf replacement pages provided by a publisher in areas of the law where changes occur at a rapid rate.
500. Magistrate See U.S. Magistrate Judge.