Term
|
Definition
| A court order requiring the government to present a detained person to the court and to show legal grounds for the person's detention. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The framework of a society in which preestablished norms and procedures provide for consistent, neutral decision making. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Laws that either fail to define their terms or use such general language that neither citizens nor judges know with certainty what the laws permit or punish. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The authority to determine the proper outcome. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Violates the principles of precision and specificity in legislation. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Case judgment that establishes binding authority and guiding principles for cases to follow on closely analogous questions of law within the court's jurisdiction. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Case judgment that establishes binding authority and guiding principles for cases to follow on closely analogous questions of law within the court's jurisdiction. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Latin: "stand by the previous decision" |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| A broad legal claim based on the argument that the challenged law or government policy can never operate in compliance with the Constitution. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The geographic or topical area of responsibility and authority of a court. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| A plaintiff choosing a court in which to sue because he or she believes the court will rule in the plaintiff's favor. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Fair legal proceedings. Due process is guaranteed by the fifth and fourteenth amendments to the U.S. Constitution. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Latin: "anew" or "over again"
On appeal, the court may review the facts de novo rather than simply reviewing the legal posture and process of the case |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| A submission to the court from an amicus curiae, or "friend of the court," an interested individual or organization who is not a party in the case. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Latin: "on the bench" or "in full court"
The judges of a circuit court of appeals will sit en banc to decide important or controversial cases. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| To ratify, uphold, or approve a lower-court ruling. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| To reverse the ruling of a lower court. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| A separate opinion of a minority of the court or a single justice agreeing with the majority opinion but applying different reasoning or legal principles. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| A separate opinion of a minority of the court or a single justice disagreeing with the result reached by the majority and challenging the majority's reasoning or legal basis. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| To send a case back to a lower court for further action. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The authority to consider a case at its inception, as contrasted with appellate jurisdiction. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Certiorari Latin: "to be informed of"
A petition for review by the Supreme Court of the United States. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Word used to describe a case on which the issues presented are no longer "live" or in which the matter in dispute has already been resolved; a case is not moot if it is susceptible to repetition but evading review. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| An unsigned opinion by the court as a whole. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| An order announcing the vote of the Supreme Court without providing an opinion. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The set of laws that establish the nature, functions and limits of government. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Constitutions, Statutes, Equity law, Common law, Administrative law, and Executive orders |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Written law formally enacted by city, county, state and federal legislative bodies. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Formally enacted, written law that is available in legal reporters or other documents. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Law created by judges to apply general principles of ethics and fairness, rather than specific legal rules, to determine the proper remedy for legal harm. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Unwritten, judge-made law consisting of rules and principles developed through custom and precedent. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Principles or theories of law. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The orders, rules and regulations promulgated by executive branch administrative agencies to carry out their delegated orders. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Orders from a government executive, such as the president, a governor or a mayor, that have the force of law. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Questions that the courts will not review because they are either outside the jurisdiction of the court or they are not capable of judicial resolution; an issue that can and should be handles more appropriately by another branch of government. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| A principle according to which the states are related to yet independent of each other, and related to yet independent of the federal government. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The review of statutes in which courts determine the meaning and application of statutes. Courts tend to engage in strict construction, which narrowly defines laws to their clear letter and intent. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The surface, apparent or obvious meaning of a legal text. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| To change or revise rather than follow or reject precedent. |
|
|
Term
| Distinguish from Precedent |
|
Definition
| To justify an outcome in a case by asserting that differences between that case and preceding cases outweigh any similarities. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| To reject the fundamental premise of a precedent. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| An act in which courts give weight to the judgment of expert administrative agencies or legislative policies and strategies. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The power of the U.S. Supreme Court to determine the meaning of the language of the Constitution and to assure that no laws violate constitutional dictates. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Supreme Court justices who interpret the Constitution according to the perceived intent of its framers. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Judges--in particular Supreme Court judges--who rely exclusively on a careful reading of legal texts to determine the meaning of the law. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The standard of evidence needed for an arrest or to issue a search warrant. More than mere suspicion, it is showing through reasonably trustworthy information that a crime has been or is being committed. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| A group summoned to hear the state's evidence in criminal cases and decide whether charges should be filed; grand juries do not determine guilt. A grand jury may be convened on the county, state or federal level; with 12 to 23 members, grand juries are usually larger than trial juries. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The party who files a complaint; the one who sues. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The party accused of violating a law, or the party being sued in a civil lawsuit. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| A private or civil wrong for which a court can provide remedy in the form of damages. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Liability without fault; liability for any and all harms, foreseeable or unforeseen, that result from a product or action. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| A request to a court that a complaint be rejected because it does not state a claim that can be remedied by law or because it is legally lacking in some other way. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| A request that a court dismiss a case on the grounds that although the claims are true they are insufficient to warrant a judgment against the defendant. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The pretrial process of gathering evidence and facts. The word also may refer to the specific items of evidence that are uncovered. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| A command for someone to testify in court. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The locality of a lawsuit and of the court hearing the suit. Thus, a change of venue means a relocation of a trial. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Literally, "to come" or "to appear"; the term used for the location from which a court draws its pool of potential jurors, who must then appear in court for voir dire. Thus, a change of venire means a change of location from which potential jurors are drawn. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Literally, "to speak the truth"; the questioning of prospective jurors to assess their suitability. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| During jury selection, a challenge in which an attorney rejects a juror without showing a reason. Attorneys have the right to eliminate a limited number of jurors through peremptory challenges. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The party making the appeal; also called the petitioner. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The party against whom an appeal is made. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The quick resolution of a legal dispute in which a judge summarily decides certain points and issues a judgment dismissing the case. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The decision or ruling of a court. |
|
|
Term
| Test for court jurisdiction of internet disputes: To establish jurisdiction, these three questions must be satisfied. |
|
Definition
1) Did the defendant purposefully conduct activities in the jurisdiction of the court?
2) Did the plaintiff's claim arise out of the defendant's activities in this locale.
3) Is it constitutionally reasonable for the court to exercise jurisdiction? |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| U.S. District Courts --> U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals --> Supreme Court of the U.S. |
|
|
Term
| Three Branches of Federal Government |
|
Definition
| Executive, Legislative, Judicial |
|
|
