Legal Dictionary
FreePlain-English definitions of common legal terms — 373 entries so far, organized by area of law and cross-linked to related concepts. Every entry here is hand-written and reviewed; nothing is templated or auto-generated. This is a growing reference, not a finished one — more terms are added deliberately over time, not in bulk.
373 of 373 terms
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Abandonment (Tenancy)
A tenant's departure from rented property with no apparent intent to return, before the lease term has ended.
Contracts
Acceptance
A manifestation of agreement to an offer on terms that make a contract enforceable under the applicable law.
Business & Corporate Law
Acquisition
A transaction where one company purchases and takes control of another, which may or may not continue to exist as a separate entity.
Torts
Actual Cause
The factual connection showing that the harm would not have occurred in the same way without the defendant's conduct.
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Actual Eviction
The formal legal process of physically removing a tenant from a rental property, generally requiring a court order.
Criminal Law & Procedure
Actus Reus
The voluntary act, omission, or conduct element required for a particular criminal offense.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Administrative Law
The law governing government agencies, their powers, procedures, regulations, and decisions.
Family Law
Adoption
A legal process that creates a parent-child relationship between an adoptive parent and child, with rights and duties established by law.
Power of Attorney, Health & Disability
Advance Directive
A written document expressing a person's wishes about future medical treatment, used if they later become unable to communicate those wishes themselves.
Power of Attorney, Health & Disability
Advance Healthcare Directive
A legal instrument through which a person can state healthcare wishes and/or appoint someone to make healthcare decisions.
Property & Real Estate
Adverse Possession
A doctrine allowing a person to gain legal title to land they have possessed openly, continuously, and without the true owner's permission, for a statutory period of time.
Power of Attorney, Health & Disability
Agent (Power of Attorney)
The person authorized to act on behalf of another under a power of attorney - also called an attorney-in-fact.
Family Law
Alimony
Court-ordered financial support paid by one former spouse to the other after divorce - also called spousal support or spousal maintenance.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)
Any method of resolving a legal dispute outside of traditional courtroom litigation, most commonly arbitration or mediation.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Amicus Curiae
Literally 'friend of the court' - a non-party who submits a brief offering information or argument relevant to a case, usually with the court's permission.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Answer
A defendant's formal written response to a complaint, admitting or denying its allegations and raising any defenses.
Contracts
Anticipatory Breach
A clear indication before performance is due that a party will not perform a contractual obligation.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Anticipatory Repudiation
A clear statement or action by one party, before performance is due, indicating they will not perform the contract - letting the other side treat it as an immediate breach.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Appellate Brief
A written legal argument submitted to an appellate court explaining why a lower court's decision should be affirmed or reversed.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Arbitration
A private dispute resolution process in which a neutral arbitrator hears both sides and issues a decision, typically binding, outside the court system.
Contracts
Arbitration Clause
A contract provision requiring or permitting specified disputes to be resolved through arbitration rather than ordinary court litigation.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Arraignment
A defendant's first formal court appearance after being charged, where they're informed of the charges and enter an initial plea.
Criminal Law & Procedure
Arrest
A lawful seizure of a person by government authority for purposes of criminal process.
Business & Corporate Law
Articles of Incorporation
The foundational document filed with the state to legally create a corporation, establishing basic facts like its name and purpose.
Constitutional Law
As-Applied Challenge
A legal challenge arguing that a law is unconstitutional or unlawful as applied to the particular claimant or circumstances.
Torts
Assault
An intentional act that causes another person reasonably to anticipate imminent harmful or offensive contact.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Assignment (Contracts)
The transfer of one party's rights under a contract to a third party.
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Assignment (Lease)
A transfer of a tenant's entire remaining interest in a lease to another party, who then deals directly with the landlord.
Employment Law
At-Will Employment
An employment relationship that generally allows either employer or employee to end the relationship at any time, subject to legal and contractual limits.
Criminal Law & Procedure
Attempt
An intentional effort to commit a crime that goes beyond mere preparation but does not complete the intended offense.
Evidence
Attorney-Client Privilege
A privilege protecting confidential communications between a client and their attorney made for the purpose of obtaining legal advice.
Evidence
Authentication
The requirement that a party offering an item of evidence show it actually is what it's claimed to be before it can be admitted.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Bail
Money or property a defendant may post to secure release from custody while awaiting trial, forfeited if they fail to appear as required.
Torts
Battery
Intentional harmful or offensive physical contact without lawful justification or consent.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Bench Trial
A trial decided by a judge alone, without a jury.
Estate Planning & Probate
Beneficiary
A person or organization designated to receive property, benefits, or rights under a will, trust, account, policy, or other arrangement.
Evidence
Best Evidence Rule
A rule generally requiring the original of a document or recording, rather than a copy or description of it, to prove its contents.
Family Law
Best Interests of the Child
The legal standard commonly used by courts when deciding custody and other child-related issues.
Family Law
Best Interests of the Child Standard
The guiding principle courts use in custody disputes, focusing on what arrangement will most benefit the child rather than what either parent prefers.
Evidence
Beyond a Reasonable Doubt
The highest standard of proof, required to convict a defendant in a criminal case, leaving no reasonable doubt in the mind of a rational fact-finder.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Binding Precedent
A prior judicial decision that a court is required to follow under the applicable hierarchy of authority.
Business & Corporate Law
Board of Directors
The group elected by shareholders to oversee a corporation's management and major decisions.
Property & Real Estate
Bona Fide Purchaser
A buyer who pays fair value for property in good faith and without notice of any competing claim to it, often given special legal protection.
Torts
Breach of Duty
Conduct that falls below the legally required standard of care.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Breach of Fiduciary Duty
A fiduciary's failure to meet their required standard of loyalty or care, exposing them to liability for resulting harm.
Evidence
Burden of Proof
The obligation to prove a disputed fact, and the standard of certainty required to do so.
Business & Corporate Law
Business Judgment Rule
A presumption protecting corporate directors from liability for decisions made in good faith, with reasonable care, and in the honest belief they served the company's interests.
Evidence
Business Records Exception
A hearsay exception allowing records kept in the regular course of business to be admitted, based on their routine, reliable creation.
Business & Corporate Law
Bylaws
A corporation's internal rules governing its own operation and governance, such as how meetings are conducted and officers elected.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Case Law
Law developed through judicial decisions, including the reasoning courts use to resolve legal disputes.
Torts
Causation
The required connection between conduct and a legally recognized injury or harm.
Evidence
Chain of Custody
A documented record tracking who handled a piece of physical evidence and when, used to show it hasn't been altered or tampered with.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Challenge for Cause
A request to remove a prospective juror based on a specific, stated reason showing bias or inability to serve fairly, with no limit on the number allowed.
Evidence
Character Evidence
Evidence about a person's general character or disposition, generally inadmissible to prove they acted a certain way on a specific occasion, subject to several exceptions.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Charitable Trust
A trust created to benefit a charitable purpose rather than specific individuals, generally exempt from the rule against perpetuities.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Checks and Balances
Constitutional mechanisms through which government branches can limit or review one another's powers.
Family Law
Child Custody
Legal authority and responsibility for a child, commonly divided into legal decision-making and physical parenting arrangements.
Family Law
Child Support
Financial support for a child, generally calculated and enforced under state law and applicable guidelines.
Evidence
Circumstantial Evidence
Evidence that requires an inference to connect it to a fact in question, rather than directly proving that fact on its own.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Class Action
A lawsuit brought by one or more representative plaintiffs on behalf of a larger group of people with similar claims.
Evidence
Clear and Convincing Evidence
A heightened standard of proof, above a mere preponderance but below beyond a reasonable doubt, used in certain civil matters with serious consequences.
Business & Corporate Law
Close Corporation
A corporation with a small number of shareholders, often operated more informally and sometimes subject to special statutory rules relaxing standard corporate formalities.
Property & Real Estate
Closing (Real Estate)
The final step of a real estate transaction, where ownership formally transfers and remaining funds and documents are exchanged.
Estate Planning & Probate
Codicil
A formal amendment to an existing will.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Collateral Estoppel (Issue Preclusion)
A doctrine barring relitigation of a specific factual or legal issue that was already actually decided in a prior case, even if the current claim is different.
Constitutional Law
Commerce Clause
The constitutional provision granting Congress power to regulate commerce among the states, with foreign nations, and with Indian tribes.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Common Law
A legal tradition in which court decisions and precedent play a major role in developing legal rules, alongside statutes and constitutions.
Business & Corporate Law
Common Stock
The standard class of corporate stock, generally carrying voting rights but paid after preferred stock in dividends and liquidation.
Family Law
Community Property
The system, used in a minority of U.S. states, treating most property acquired during marriage as owned equally by both spouses and generally divided equally at divorce.
Torts
Comparative Negligence
A system that reduces a claimant's recovery according to the claimant's share of responsibility for the harm, subject to the applicable state's rules.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Complaint
The initial document a plaintiff files to start a civil lawsuit, laying out the claims and the relief sought.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Condition Precedent
An event that must occur before a party's contractual duty to perform arises.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Condition Subsequent
An event that, if it occurs, cuts off an already-existing contractual duty to perform.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Consequential Damages
Losses that don't flow directly from a breach but result from special circumstances, recoverable only if they were reasonably foreseeable to the breaching party at the time of contracting.
Power of Attorney, Health & Disability
Conservator
A person appointed by a court to manage the financial affairs of someone unable to manage them due to incapacity - in some states, the same role is called a guardian of the estate.
Contracts
Consideration
Something of legally recognized value exchanged as part of a bargain, supporting a promise in a traditional contract.
Criminal Law & Procedure
Conspiracy
An agreement between two or more people to commit a criminal offense, together with any additional elements required by the applicable law.
Constitutional Law
Constitution
The fundamental legal framework that establishes government institutions, powers, limits, and protected rights.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Constitutional Law
The body of law concerning the meaning, structure, powers, and limits of government under a constitution.
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Constructive Eviction
A situation where a landlord's failure to maintain the property is so severe that it forces the tenant to move out, treated legally as if the landlord evicted them.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Constructive Trust
An equitable remedy imposed by a court to prevent unjust enrichment, treating a wrongdoer as if they were holding specific property in trust for the rightful owner.
Torts
Contributory Negligence
A traditional rule under which a claimant's own negligence can bar recovery, still used in some jurisdictions with important exceptions.
Torts
Conversion
An intentional exercise of control over another person's property that seriously interferes with the owner's rights.
Business & Corporate Law
Corporation
A legal entity, separate from its owners, that can own property, enter contracts, and be sued in its own name, with shareholders' liability generally limited to their investment.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Counterclaim
A claim a defendant brings back against the plaintiff in the same lawsuit, rather than filing a separate case.
Contracts
Counteroffer
A response to an offer that proposes different or additional terms and generally operates as a new offer rather than an acceptance.
Property & Real Estate
Covenant Running with the Land
A restrictive covenant that binds not just the original parties but also future owners of the affected property.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Cover (UCC)
A buyer's right, after a seller's breach, to purchase substitute goods in good faith and recover the difference in cost from the breaching seller.
Criminal Law & Procedure
Crime
An act or omission defined by law as an offense against the public and punishable by the government.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Cross-Claim
A claim asserted by one co-party against another co-party (for example, one defendant against a fellow defendant) within the same lawsuit.
Evidence
Cross-Examination
The questioning of a witness by the opposing party after direct examination, often used to test credibility or highlight inconsistencies.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Cy Pres Doctrine
A doctrine letting a court redirect a charitable trust's purpose to something as close as possible to the original intent, when that original purpose becomes impossible or impractical.
Evidence
Daubert Standard
The standard many courts use to decide whether expert testimony is reliable enough to be admitted, examining factors like testability and peer review of the underlying methodology.
Property & Real Estate
Deed
A legal document transferring ownership of real property from one party to another.
Property & Real Estate
Deed of Trust
An arrangement, used in place of a mortgage in some states, in which a neutral trustee holds legal title to property as security for a loan.
Torts
Defamation
A false statement of fact communicated to a third party that harms another person's reputation and satisfies the applicable legal requirements.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Default Judgment
A judgment entered against a defendant who fails to respond to a lawsuit or appear in court as required.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Delegation
The transfer of one party's duties under a contract to a third party, though the original party generally remains liable if the duties aren't performed.
Evidence
Demonstrative Evidence
Evidence created to illustrate or explain other testimony or evidence, such as a chart or diagram, rather than being the actual object involved in the case.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Deposition
Sworn out-of-court testimony given by a witness or party during discovery, recorded for possible use at trial.
Business & Corporate Law
Derivative Suit
A lawsuit brought by a shareholder on the corporation's behalf to remedy harm to the company, typically caused by its own directors or officers.
Evidence
Direct Evidence
Evidence that directly proves a fact without needing any inference, such as an eyewitness's firsthand account.
Evidence
Direct Examination
The initial questioning of a witness by the party who called them to testify.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Directed Verdict
A ruling by the judge deciding the outcome before the case goes to the jury, because the evidence presented could not reasonably support any other result.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Discovery
The pretrial process by which parties exchange information and evidence relevant to the case.
Business & Corporate Law
Dissolution (Business)
The formal process of ending a business entity's legal existence, including winding up its affairs and distributing remaining assets.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Diversity Jurisdiction
Federal court jurisdiction over a case between citizens of different states, available when the amount in controversy exceeds a statutory threshold.
Business & Corporate Law
Dividend
A distribution of a corporation's profits to its shareholders, typically paid in cash or additional stock.
Family Law
Divorce
A legal process that ends a marriage and may address property, support, custody, and related issues.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Docket
The official record of a court's proceedings and filings in a given case, or a court's overall schedule of cases.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Double Jeopardy
The constitutional protection against being prosecuted or punished twice for the same offense in circumstances covered by the Double Jeopardy Clause.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Due Process
Constitutional protection requiring government to use fair procedures, and in some circumstances respect fundamental rights, before depriving a person of protected interests.
Power of Attorney, Health & Disability
Durable Power of Attorney
A power of attorney designed to remain effective despite the principal's later incapacity, subject to its terms and applicable law.
Business & Corporate Law
Duty of Care
A legal obligation to act with an appropriate level of care toward people who may foreseeably be harmed by one's conduct.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Duty of Loyalty
A fiduciary's obligation to act solely in the beneficiary's interest, avoiding conflicts of interest and self-dealing.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Duty to Account
A fiduciary's obligation to keep accurate records of, and periodically report on, their management of entrusted property.
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Duty to Mitigate (Landlord)
A landlord's obligation, in many states, to make reasonable efforts to re-rent a unit after a tenant breaks their lease, rather than letting damages pile up unnecessarily.
Evidence
Dying Declaration
A hearsay exception for a statement made by a person who believed their death was imminent, describing the cause or circumstances of it.
Property & Real Estate
Easement
A nonpossessory right to use another person's land for a specific purpose, such as passing across it.
Property & Real Estate
Easement Appurtenant
An easement that benefits a specific piece of land and generally transfers automatically with it when the land is sold.
Property & Real Estate
Easement in Gross
An easement that benefits a specific person or entity rather than a piece of land, and does not automatically transfer with a sale of land.
Family Law
Emancipation
A legal process by which a minor becomes recognized as an adult for certain purposes before reaching the standard age of majority, ending a parent's legal authority over them.
Property & Real Estate
Eminent Domain
The government's power to take private property for public use, provided it pays the owner just compensation.
Property & Real Estate
Encumbrance
Any claim, lien, easement, or restriction that limits the use or transfer of a property or reduces its value.
Family Law
Equitable Distribution
The system, used in most U.S. states, of dividing marital property upon divorce based on fairness factors rather than an automatic equal split.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Erie Doctrine
The rule that federal courts hearing state-law claims (typically via diversity jurisdiction) must generally apply the substantive law of the relevant state.
Property & Real Estate
Escrow
An arrangement where a neutral third party holds funds or documents until specified conditions of a transaction are satisfied.
Evidence
Excited Utterance
A hearsay exception for a statement made about a startling event while the speaker was still under the stress of the excitement it caused.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Exclusionary Rule
A rule barring the prosecution from using evidence obtained through an unconstitutional search or seizure.
Estate Planning & Probate
Executor
A person named in a will to administer the deceased person's estate, subject to court appointment and applicable law.
Property & Real Estate
Executory Interest
A future interest in a third party that cuts short a prior estate before it would naturally end, rather than waiting for it to expire.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Exigent Circumstances
An emergency situation, such as an imminent risk of harm or destruction of evidence, that can justify a warrantless search under the Fourth Amendment.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Expectation Damages
Contract damages meant to put the injured party in the position they would have been in had the contract been fully performed.
Evidence
Expert Witness
A witness qualified by specialized knowledge, skill, or training who is permitted to offer opinion testimony within that area of expertise.
Constitutional Law
Facial Challenge
A legal challenge arguing that a law or government action is invalid in its operation generally, rather than only as applied to one person.
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Fair Housing Act
A federal law prohibiting discrimination in housing based on protected characteristics such as race, religion, national origin, sex, familial status, and disability.
Torts
False Imprisonment
Intentional confinement of a person within a bounded area without lawful authority or consent.
Family Law
Fault-Based Divorce
A divorce granted based on proof that one spouse committed specific marital misconduct, such as adultery or abandonment.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Federal Jurisdiction
The authority of a federal court to hear a case under the Constitution and federal statutes.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Federal Question Jurisdiction
Federal court jurisdiction over a case arising under the U.S. Constitution, federal law, or a federal treaty.
Property & Real Estate
Fee Simple Absolute
The most complete form of property ownership, granting the owner full rights of possession, use, and transfer, with no built-in time limit or condition.
Criminal Law & Procedure
Felony
A serious criminal offense classified by law as more severe than a misdemeanor and generally carrying potentially substantial punishment.
Business & Corporate Law
Fiduciary Duty
A duty of loyalty, care, or good faith that arises when one person or entity is entrusted with significant authority or interests belonging to another.
Business & Corporate Law
Fiduciary Duty of Directors
The obligations of loyalty and care that corporate directors owe to the company and its shareholders in managing corporate affairs.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Fifth Amendment
The constitutional provision protecting against self-incrimination, double jeopardy, and deprivation of life, liberty, or property without due process.
Contracts
Force Majeure
A contract provision addressing extraordinary events beyond a party's control that may affect contractual performance.
Property & Real Estate
Foreclosure
The legal process by which a lender takes and sells mortgaged property after the borrower defaults on the loan.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Forum Non Conveniens
A doctrine letting a court decline jurisdiction, even if technically proper, because another available forum is significantly more convenient for the parties and witnesses.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Fourth Amendment
The constitutional provision protecting people against unreasonable searches and seizures by the government.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Fruit of the Poisonous Tree
A doctrine extending the exclusionary rule to bar not just illegally obtained evidence itself, but also other evidence later derived from it.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Frustration of Purpose
A defense excusing performance when an unforeseen event destroys the entire reason a party entered the contract, even though performance itself remains possible.
Property & Real Estate
Future Interest
A present legal right to property that will become possessory at some point in the future, rather than immediately.
Business & Corporate Law
General Partnership
A business owned by two or more people who share management and are each personally liable for the partnership's debts.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Grand Jury
A panel of citizens that reviews evidence presented by prosecutors to decide whether there's enough basis to formally charge someone with a serious crime.
Power of Attorney, Health & Disability
Guardian
A person appointed by a court to make personal and often medical decisions for someone (a minor or incapacitated adult) unable to make those decisions themselves.
Family Law
Guardianship
A court-created legal relationship giving a person authority and responsibility to care for another person or manage specified interests.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Habeas Corpus
A legal action allowing a person in custody to challenge the lawfulness of their detention before a court.
Evidence
Habit Evidence
Evidence of a person's regular, specific response to a particular situation, which - unlike general character evidence - is generally admissible to show they acted consistently with it.
Evidence
Hearsay
An out-of-court statement offered to prove the truth of what it asserts, generally inadmissible unless it fits a recognized exception.
Evidence
Hearsay Exception
A recognized category of out-of-court statement that is admissible despite being hearsay, based on circumstances that make it especially reliable.
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Holdover Tenant
A tenant who stays in possession of the property after their lease term has ended without a new agreement.
Property & Real Estate
Homestead Exemption
A legal protection shielding some amount of equity in a person's primary residence from certain creditors and, in some states, from property taxes.
Employment Law
Hostile Work Environment
Workplace conditions involving sufficiently severe or pervasive unlawful harassment that can alter the conditions of employment.
Evidence
Impeachment
The process of challenging a witness's credibility, such as by showing bias, a prior inconsistent statement, or a lack of ability to perceive events accurately.
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Implied Warranty of Habitability
A legal guarantee, read into most residential leases, that the rented premises will be kept fit for basic living conditions throughout the tenancy.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Impossibility
A defense excusing contract performance when an unforeseen event makes performing the contract literally impossible.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Impracticability
A defense excusing contract performance when an unforeseen event makes performance extremely and unreasonably difficult or costly, even if not strictly impossible.
Power of Attorney, Health & Disability
Incapacity
A legal determination that a person lacks the mental ability to make certain decisions for themselves, such as managing finances or consenting to medical care.
Contracts
Indemnification
A contractual arrangement under which one party agrees to compensate another for specified losses, claims, or liabilities.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Indictment
A formal, written accusation issued by a grand jury charging a person with a crime.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Indispensable Party
A party so essential to a case that it cannot proceed at all in their absence, unlike a merely necessary party.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Inter Vivos Trust
A trust created and made effective during the settlor's lifetime, rather than through their will - also called a living trust.
Constitutional Law
Intermediate Scrutiny
A heightened form of constitutional review commonly applied to certain classifications, requiring an important governmental objective and a substantial relationship between the law and that objective.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Interpleader
A procedure letting a party holding property or funds claimed by multiple others ask the court to determine who is actually entitled to it, without the holder taking sides.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Interrogatories
Written questions one party sends another during discovery, which must be answered in writing under oath.
Estate Planning & Probate
Intestate
Dying without a valid will governing the relevant property.
Estate Planning & Probate
Intestate Succession
The legal rules that determine which relatives inherit property when a person dies without an effective will.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Irrevocable Trust
A trust the settlor generally cannot modify or cancel once created, often used for asset protection or estate tax planning.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Joinder
The process of combining multiple parties or claims into a single lawsuit.
Family Law
Joint Custody
An arrangement in which both parents share legal custody, physical custody, or both, rather than one parent holding it exclusively.
Property & Real Estate
Joint Tenancy
A form of co-ownership in which each owner holds an equal share along with a right of survivorship, so a deceased owner's share passes automatically to the surviving owners.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Judgment
A court's final, official decision resolving the rights and obligations of the parties in a case.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Judgment Notwithstanding the Verdict (JNOV)
A ruling overturning a jury's verdict because no reasonable jury could have reached that result on the evidence presented.
Evidence
Judicial Notice
A court's acceptance of a fact as true without formal proof, because it is either generally known or can be accurately verified from an unquestionable source.
Constitutional Law
Judicial Review
The power of courts to determine whether government action is consistent with the Constitution or other controlling law.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Jurisdiction
A court's legal authority to hear a type of case or exercise power over a person or property.
Property & Real Estate
Just Compensation
The fair market value the government must pay a property owner when taking their property through eminent domain.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Laches
An equitable defense barring a claim because the plaintiff unreasonably delayed asserting it, causing prejudice to the other side - distinct from a fixed statute of limitations.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Law
A system of enforceable rules and principles that governs conduct, resolves disputes, and structures public institutions.
Evidence
Lay Witness
An ordinary witness who testifies based on personal, firsthand perception, rather than specialized expertise.
Evidence
Leading Question
A question that suggests its own answer, generally permitted on cross-examination but restricted on direct examination.
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Lease
A contract granting a tenant the right to possess and use property for a specified period in exchange for rent.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Legal Capacity
A person's legally recognized ability to perform a particular legal act or exercise a particular legal right.
Family Law
Legal Custody
A parent's right and responsibility to make major decisions about a child's upbringing, such as education, healthcare, and religion.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Legal Doctrine
A recognized body of legal reasoning that courts use to decide recurring types of legal questions.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Legal Duty
An obligation imposed or recognized by law requiring a person or entity to act or refrain from acting in a particular way.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Legal Principle
A broad idea used to guide legal interpretation, decision-making, and the development of legal rules.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Legal Right
A legally recognized entitlement that may be enforced or protected by a legal system.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Legal Rule
A rule recognized and enforced by a legal system that tells people what conduct is required, permitted, or prohibited.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Legal System
The institutions, rules, procedures, and principles through which a society creates, interprets, and enforces law.
Torts
Libel
Defamation expressed in a fixed form, traditionally including writing and other recorded communications.
Property & Real Estate
License (Property)
A revocable permission to use someone else's land for a specific purpose, falling short of the more permanent rights an easement provides.
Property & Real Estate
Lien
A legal claim against property securing a debt or obligation, which can allow the property to be sold to satisfy it.
Property & Real Estate
Life Estate
An ownership interest in property that lasts only for the duration of a specified person's life, after which it passes to someone else.
Business & Corporate Law
Limited Liability Company (LLC)
A business structure combining the limited liability of a corporation with the flexible management and pass-through taxation of a partnership.
Business & Corporate Law
Limited Partnership
A partnership with at least one general partner who manages the business and bears full liability, and one or more limited partners who invest but generally aren't personally liable beyond their investment.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Liquidated Damages
A specific damages amount the parties agree to in advance in case of breach, enforceable if it's a reasonable estimate of actual harm rather than a penalty.
Power of Attorney, Health & Disability
Living Will
An advance directive expressing a person's wishes concerning certain medical treatment if they later cannot communicate those wishes.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Long-Arm Statute
A state law authorizing courts to exercise personal jurisdiction over an out-of-state defendant who has certain connections to the state.
Family Law
Marriage
A legally recognized relationship that creates rights and duties between spouses under applicable law.
Contracts
Material Breach
A breach serious enough to substantially defeat the injured party's expected benefit from the contract.
Evidence
Materiality
Whether the fact that a piece of evidence tends to prove actually matters to the legal issues in the case.
Property & Real Estate
Mechanic's Lien
A lien available to a contractor or supplier who has not been paid for work or materials provided to improve a property.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Mediation
A process in which a neutral third party helps disputing parties negotiate their own resolution, without imposing a binding decision.
Criminal Law & Procedure
Mens Rea
The mental state required for a criminal offense, such as intent, knowledge, recklessness, or negligence.
Business & Corporate Law
Merger
A transaction combining two companies into one surviving entity.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Minimum Contacts
The constitutional standard requiring a defendant to have sufficient purposeful connections with a state before that state's courts can exercise personal jurisdiction over them.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Miranda Rights
The warnings police must give a suspect in custody before interrogation, informing them of their right to remain silent and to an attorney.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Miranda Warning
The warnings generally required before custodial interrogation to protect a suspect's constitutional privilege against compelled self-incrimination and right to counsel.
Criminal Law & Procedure
Misdemeanor
A criminal offense generally less serious than a felony and subject to lower maximum penalties under applicable law.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Mitigation of Damages
A non-breaching party's obligation to take reasonable steps to limit the harm they suffer from a breach, rather than letting losses accumulate unnecessarily.
Constitutional Law
Mootness
A doctrine under which a court generally will not decide a dispute when the parties no longer have a live controversy requiring judicial relief.
Property & Real Estate
Mortgage
A loan secured by real property, giving the lender the right to foreclose on the property if the borrower fails to repay.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Motion for New Trial
A request asking the court to set aside a verdict and hold a new trial, often based on a legal error, newly discovered evidence, or an unjust result.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Motion to Dismiss
A request asking the court to end a case, or part of it, without a full trial - commonly because the complaint fails to state a valid legal claim.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Necessary Party
A party whose participation is needed for the court to grant complete relief or to protect that party's own interests, though the case can sometimes proceed without them.
Torts
Negligence
Failure to use the level of care that a reasonably careful person would use under similar circumstances, resulting in legally recognized harm.
Family Law
No-Fault Divorce
A divorce granted without either spouse needing to prove the other did something wrong, typically based on irreconcilable differences.
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Notice to Quit
A formal notice a landlord gives a tenant demanding they leave the property, typically the first step before filing an eviction action.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Novation
An agreement substituting a new party for an original one in a contract, releasing the original party from further obligation.
Contracts
Offer
A sufficiently definite proposal to enter a contract that indicates the proposing party is prepared to be legally bound upon acceptance.
Contracts
Parol Evidence Rule
A contract doctrine that can limit the use of prior or contemporaneous outside statements to alter or contradict a final written agreement.
Business & Corporate Law
Partnership at Will
A partnership with no fixed end date, which any partner can generally dissolve at any time.
Family Law
Paternity
The legal determination of who a child's father is, establishing rights and responsibilities such as custody and child support.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Peremptory Challenge
A limited power to remove a prospective juror during jury selection without stating a reason, subject to constitutional limits against discriminatory use.
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Periodic Tenancy
A tenancy that automatically renews for successive periods (such as month to month) until either party gives proper notice to end it.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Personal Jurisdiction
A court's authority to exercise legal power over a particular defendant or person.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Persuasive Authority
Legal authority that a court may consider and find helpful but is not required to follow.
Family Law
Physical Custody
The right to have a child physically live with and be cared for by a parent on a day-to-day basis.
Evidence
Physician-Patient Privilege
A privilege protecting confidential communications made by a patient to their doctor for the purpose of diagnosis or treatment.
Business & Corporate Law
Piercing the Corporate Veil
A doctrine allowing a court to hold shareholders personally liable for corporate debts when the corporate form has been abused, such as through fraud or failing to maintain separateness.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Plea Bargain
An agreement in which a defendant pleads guilty, often to a lesser charge or for a reduced sentence, in exchange for not going to trial.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Pleading
A formal written document filed with a court stating a party's claims or defenses, such as a complaint or an answer.
Constitutional Law
Political Question Doctrine
A doctrine under which courts decline to decide certain issues considered constitutionally committed to the political branches or lacking judicially manageable standards.
Family Law
Postnuptial Agreement
A contract similar to a prenuptial agreement, but entered into after a couple is already married.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Pour-Over Will
A will that transfers any remaining assets not already placed in a living trust into that trust at the person's death.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Power of Appointment
An authority granted to someone allowing them to decide who will receive certain trust or estate property, within limits set by the person who granted the power.
Power of Attorney, Health & Disability
Power of Attorney
A legal document authorizing one person (the agent) to act on behalf of another (the principal) in specified financial, legal, or personal matters.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Precedent
An earlier judicial decision that may guide a court when deciding a later case involving similar legal issues.
Business & Corporate Law
Preferred Stock
A class of corporate stock that generally receives dividends and liquidation proceeds ahead of common stock, but often with limited or no voting rights.
Torts
Premises Liability
Legal responsibility for injuries arising from conditions or activities on property, often based on the relationship between the property possessor and the injured person.
Family Law
Prenuptial Agreement
A contract made before marriage addressing financial and property rights and other matters permitted by applicable law.
Evidence
Preponderance of the Evidence
The standard of proof used in most civil cases, requiring that a fact be more likely true than not.
Evidence
Present Sense Impression
A hearsay exception for a statement describing an event, made while the speaker was perceiving it or immediately afterward.
Evidence
Presumption
A legal assumption that a fact is true unless and until it is disproven, shifting the burden to the other side to rebut it.
Power of Attorney, Health & Disability
Principal (Power of Attorney)
The person who grants authority to an agent under a power of attorney.
Evidence
Prior Consistent Statement
An earlier statement by a witness that matches their current testimony, sometimes usable to rebut a claim that the testimony was recently fabricated.
Evidence
Prior Inconsistent Statement
An earlier statement by a witness that conflicts with their current testimony, usable to impeach their credibility.
Evidence
Privilege
A legal right to refuse to disclose, or to prevent someone else from disclosing, certain confidential communications - such as those between attorney and client.
Criminal Law & Procedure
Probable Cause
A factual basis that would lead a reasonable person to believe that a crime occurred or that particular evidence or circumstances justify the government action at issue.
Estate Planning & Probate
Probate
The legal process for validating a will and administering a deceased person's probate estate.
Evidence
Probative Value
How strongly a piece of evidence actually tends to prove the fact it's offered for, weighed against its potential for unfair prejudice or confusion.
Torts
Product Liability
Legal responsibility for harm caused by defective or dangerously unsafe products under applicable theories such as negligence, warranty, or strict liability.
Property & Real Estate
Profit à Prendre
A right to enter another's land and remove something from it, such as timber, minerals, or crops.
Contracts
Promissory Estoppel
A doctrine that can make a promise enforceable when reasonable reliance on the promise causes substantial detriment and enforcement is needed to avoid injustice.
Torts
Proximate Cause
A legal limitation on causation that generally asks whether the harm was sufficiently connected and foreseeable to the conduct.
Business & Corporate Law
Proxy Vote
A vote cast by one person on behalf of a shareholder who has authorized them to do so, commonly used when the shareholder can't attend a meeting in person.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Prudent Investor Rule
A standard requiring a trustee to invest trust assets the way a reasonably prudent investor would, considering the overall portfolio rather than each investment in isolation.
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Quiet Enjoyment
A tenant's right to use their rented property without significant interference from the landlord or others with a superior claim to it.
Property & Real Estate
Quiet Title Action
A lawsuit asking a court to resolve competing or clouded claims to ownership of a piece of property.
Property & Real Estate
Quitclaim Deed
A deed transferring whatever interest the seller may have in a property, without any guarantee that the title is actually valid or clear.
Constitutional Law
Rational Basis Review
A deferential form of constitutional review under which a law generally survives if it is rationally related to a legitimate governmental interest.
Evidence
Real Evidence
An actual physical object involved in the underlying events of a case, offered as evidence itself, rather than a representation of it.
Employment Law
Reasonable Accommodation
A change or adjustment that enables a qualified person with a disability, or in certain other protected circumstances, to participate in work or another covered activity when required by law.
Criminal Law & Procedure
Reasonable Suspicion
A particularized and objective basis for suspecting that criminal activity or another legally relevant condition may be occurring.
Evidence
Rebuttable Presumption
A presumption that stands unless the opposing party comes forward with evidence sufficient to overcome it.
Property & Real Estate
Recording Statute
A law establishing how and when a property interest must be officially recorded to be protected against later competing claims.
Evidence
Redirect Examination
Follow-up questioning of a witness by the original party, after cross-examination, typically to clarify or rebut points raised on cross.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Reformation
An equitable remedy that changes a written instrument so that it reflects the parties' actual agreement when recognized grounds justify correction.
Property & Real Estate
Regulatory Taking
A government regulation that restricts property use so severely it is treated as a taking requiring just compensation, even without physically seizing the property.
Evidence
Relevance
The requirement that evidence have some tendency to make a fact that matters to the case more or less probable than it would be without it.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Reliance Damages
Contract damages meant to reimburse the injured party for costs reasonably incurred in relying on the contract, rather than the profit they expected from it.
Property & Real Estate
Remainder
A future interest in property held by a third party that becomes possessory automatically once a prior estate (such as a life estate) ends.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Remand
Sending a case back to a lower court, or from federal court back to state court, often because removal or an appeal was improper.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Remedy
A legal means of addressing a wrong or enforcing a right, such as damages, an injunction, or restitution.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Removal
The process of moving a lawsuit filed in state court to federal court, when the case could have originally been filed there.
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Rent Control
Local or state regulation limiting how much and how often a landlord can raise rent on a covered unit.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Requests for Admission
A discovery tool asking the other party to admit or deny specific factual statements, narrowing what's actually disputed at trial.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Requests for Production
A discovery request asking the other party to produce documents, electronic records, or other tangible evidence.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Res Judicata (Claim Preclusion)
A doctrine barring parties from relitigating a claim that has already been finally decided by a court in a prior case.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Rescission
A remedy that unwinds a contract and seeks to return the parties, as far as possible, to their pre-contract positions.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Restitution Damages
A remedy requiring a party to return a benefit they received under a contract, to prevent their unjust enrichment.
Property & Real Estate
Restrictive Covenant
A private agreement limiting how land can be used, often found in a deed and enforceable by other property owners in the same development.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Resulting Trust
A trust implied by law when circumstances suggest a person holding property never intended to keep the beneficial interest in it themselves.
Employment Law
Retaliation
Adverse action taken against a person because they engaged in legally protected activity.
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Retaliatory Eviction
An eviction attempted specifically to punish a tenant for exercising a legal right, such as reporting a housing code violation - generally prohibited.
Property & Real Estate
Reversion
A future interest that returns property to the original grantor (or their estate) once a lesser estate they granted comes to an end.
Estate Planning & Probate
Revocable Trust
A trust that the person who created it generally retains the power to amend or revoke during the specified period, subject to its terms and law.
Contracts
Revocation
Withdrawal of an offer before it has been accepted, when the law permits the offeror to withdraw it.
Property & Real Estate
Right of Survivorship
A feature of certain co-ownership forms where a deceased owner's interest passes automatically to the surviving co-owner(s), bypassing probate.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Right to a Speedy Trial
The constitutional right of a criminal defendant to have their case brought to trial without unreasonable delay.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Right to Counsel
The constitutional right of a criminal defendant to be represented by an attorney, including one appointed at government expense if they cannot afford one.
Property & Real Estate
Riparian Rights
The rights of a landowner whose property borders a body of water to make reasonable use of it.
Constitutional Law
Ripeness
A doctrine limiting judicial review of disputes that are not yet sufficiently developed for a court to decide them.
Evidence
Rule 403 Balancing Test
A rule allowing a court to exclude otherwise relevant evidence if its probative value is substantially outweighed by risks like unfair prejudice, confusion, or wasted time.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Rule Against Perpetuities
A common-law rule voiding certain future property interests that might not vest within a set time period, meant to prevent property from being tied up indefinitely.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Rule of Law
The principle that government and private persons are subject to publicly established law rather than arbitrary power.
Business & Corporate Law
S Corporation
A corporation that has elected a special tax status letting income pass through to shareholders' personal returns, avoiding the double taxation a standard C corporation faces.
Criminal Law & Procedure
Search Warrant
A judicial authorization permitting law enforcement to conduct a specified search based on the required showing under the applicable law.
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Security Deposit
Money a tenant pays upfront that the landlord may use to cover unpaid rent or damage beyond normal wear and tear, generally refundable subject to those deductions.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Self-Dealing
A fiduciary using their position for personal benefit in a way that conflicts with the interests of the person they're supposed to serve.
Criminal Law & Procedure
Self-Defense
A legal defense permitting reasonable force to protect oneself from an imminent unlawful threat, subject to jurisdiction-specific limits.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Separation of Powers
The division of governmental authority among branches so that lawmaking, enforcement, and adjudication are not concentrated in one institution.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Service of Process
The formal delivery of a summons and complaint to a defendant, notifying them of a lawsuit and giving the court power to proceed against them.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Settlor
The person who creates a trust and transfers property into it - also called a grantor or trustor.
Business & Corporate Law
Shareholder
A person or entity that owns stock in a corporation, giving them an ownership stake and generally certain voting rights.
Business & Corporate Law
Shareholder Derivative Action
Another name for a derivative suit - a lawsuit a shareholder brings on the corporation's own behalf against those who allegedly harmed it.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Sixth Amendment
The constitutional provision guaranteeing criminal defendants rights including a speedy and public trial, an impartial jury, and the assistance of counsel.
Torts
Slander
Defamation expressed through spoken or otherwise transient communication.
Family Law
Sole Custody
An arrangement in which one parent holds legal custody, physical custody, or both exclusively, rather than sharing it with the other parent.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Specific Performance
A court order requiring a party to perform a contractual obligation rather than merely pay damages.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Speedy Trial
The constitutional and statutory right to have a criminal prosecution proceed without unjustified delay.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Spendthrift Trust
A trust designed to protect its assets from a beneficiary's creditors by restricting the beneficiary's ability to transfer or assign their interest.
Evidence
Spousal Privilege
A privilege protecting certain confidential communications between married spouses, and in some jurisdictions, allowing a spouse to refuse to testify against the other.
Power of Attorney, Health & Disability
Springing Power of Attorney
A power of attorney that only takes effect upon a specified future event, such as the principal's incapacity.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Standing
A party's right to bring a lawsuit, generally requiring a concrete, particularized injury caused by the defendant that a favorable ruling could redress.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Stare Decisis
The principle that courts generally follow established judicial decisions in order to promote consistency and stability.
Foundations & Legal Systems
State Jurisdiction
The authority of a state court or state legal system to hear and decide matters assigned to it by state law.
Evidence
Statement Against Interest
A hearsay exception for a statement so contrary to the speaker's own financial or legal interest at the time that a reasonable person wouldn't have said it unless it were true.
Contracts
Statute of Frauds
A rule requiring certain categories of agreements to be evidenced by a writing signed by the party to be charged.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Statute of Limitations
A law setting the maximum time after an event within which a legal claim must be filed, after which it is generally barred.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Statutory Law
Law enacted by a legislature and published in statutes or codes.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Stop and Frisk
A limited pat-down of a person's outer clothing for weapons, permitted during a lawful investigative stop when police reasonably suspect the person is armed and dangerous.
Torts
Strict Liability
Liability imposed without requiring proof of ordinary negligence for certain activities, products, or circumstances recognized by law.
Constitutional Law
Strict Scrutiny
The most demanding form of constitutional judicial review, generally requiring a sufficiently strong governmental justification and a narrowly tailored law.
Foundations & Legal Systems
Subject-Matter Jurisdiction
A court's authority to hear the particular type of dispute presented to it.
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Sublease
An arrangement where a tenant rents out all or part of their leased premises to another person, while remaining responsible to the original landlord.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Subpoena
A court order compelling a person to appear and testify, or to produce specified documents or evidence.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Subpoena Duces Tecum
A specific type of subpoena compelling the recipient to produce documents or other physical evidence, rather than just testify.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Successor Trustee
The person or institution named to take over as trustee if the original trustee dies, resigns, or becomes unable to serve.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Summary Judgment
A ruling deciding a case, or part of it, without trial because there's no genuine dispute over the material facts and one side is entitled to win as a matter of law.
Constitutional Law
Supremacy Clause
The constitutional principle that valid federal law takes priority over conflicting state law.
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Tenancy at Sufferance
The status of a tenant who remains in possession after their lease has ended without the landlord's consent, but before being formally evicted.
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Tenancy at Will
A tenancy with no fixed end date, continuing until either the landlord or tenant ends it, usually with proper notice.
Property & Real Estate
Tenancy by the Entirety
A form of co-ownership available only to married couples, combining equal shares, a right of survivorship, and protection from a creditor of only one spouse.
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Tenancy for Years
A tenancy for a fixed, agreed-upon period, ending automatically on the specified date without any notice required.
Property & Real Estate
Tenancy in Common
A form of co-ownership in which each owner holds a separate, transferable share with no automatic right of survivorship to the others.
Criminal Procedure & Rights
Terry Stop
A brief investigative detention by police, permitted based on reasonable suspicion rather than the higher standard of probable cause.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Testamentary Trust
A trust created by a person's will, which only takes effect after their death.
Estate Planning & Probate
Testator
A person who makes a will.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Third-Party Beneficiary
A person who isn't a party to a contract but who the contracting parties intended to directly benefit from it, and who may be able to enforce it.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Third-Party Claim (Impleader)
A procedure letting a defendant bring a new party into the lawsuit who may be liable for all or part of the plaintiff's claim against them.
Property & Real Estate
Title Insurance
Insurance protecting a property owner or lender against financial loss from defects in the property's title that existed before the policy was issued.
Business Operations & Commercial Law
Trade Secret
Information that derives economic value from not being generally known and is subject to reasonable measures to keep it secret.
Torts
Trespass to Land
Intentional physical entry onto another person's land without permission or legal privilege.
Estate Planning & Probate
Trust
A legal arrangement in which a trustee holds and manages property for beneficiaries according to the trust's terms and applicable law.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Trust Corpus
The property held within a trust - also called the trust principal or trust res.
Trusts & Fiduciary Law
Trustee
The person or institution holding legal title to trust property and managing it according to the trust's terms, for the beneficiaries' benefit.
Business & Corporate Law
Ultra Vires
An act by a corporation that exceeds the authority granted by its charter or governing documents.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Unconscionability
A defense to contract enforcement based on terms so one-sided or a bargaining process so unfair that enforcing the contract would be unjust.
Landlord-Tenant & Housing
Unlawful Detainer
A legal action a landlord files to remove a tenant who has stayed in possession without the right to do so.
Property & Real Estate
Variance
An official exception granted allowing a property owner to deviate from an otherwise applicable zoning rule.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Venue
The proper geographic location for a lawsuit to be filed and heard, distinct from whether a court has jurisdiction at all.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Verdict
A jury's (or, in a bench trial, a judge's) formal decision on the factual questions in a case.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Voir Dire
The process of questioning prospective jurors to determine their suitability and any potential bias before a trial begins.
Contract Remedies & Commercial Transactions
Warranty (Contracts)
A promise or assurance about the quality, condition, or performance of goods or services provided under a contract.
Property & Real Estate
Warranty Deed
A deed in which the seller guarantees they hold clear title to the property and will defend against any competing claims.
Estate Planning & Probate
Will
A legal instrument that expresses how a person wants certain property and responsibilities handled after death, subject to applicable law.
Evidence
Work Product Doctrine
A protection shielding materials an attorney prepares in anticipation of litigation from discovery by the opposing side.
Courts & Civil Procedure
Writ of Certiorari
An order by a higher court, most notably the U.S. Supreme Court, agreeing to review a lower court's decision - granted at the higher court's discretion, not as of right.
Torts
Wrongful Death
A civil claim brought by authorized survivors or representatives when a person's death is caused by conduct recognized as legally wrongful.
Employment Law
Wrongful Termination
An employment termination that violates an applicable law, contract, or recognized public policy.
Property & Real Estate
Zoning
Local government regulation dividing land into districts and restricting the types of uses and structures permitted within each.
These definitions explain general legal terminology for educational purposes. They are not legal advice, and exact meanings and requirements can vary by jurisdiction. For guidance on a specific situation, consult a licensed attorney.
