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| GLOSSARY |
Action
- Proceeding taken in a court of law. Synonymous with case,
suit lawsuit.
Adjudication - A judgment or decree
Adversary system - Basic U.S. trial system in which each
of the opposing parties has opportunity to state his viewpoints
before the court. Plaintiff argues for defendant's guilt (criminal)
or liability (civil). Defense argues for defendant's innocence (criminal) or against liability civil).
Affirm - The assertion of an appellate court that the
judgment of the lower court is correct and should stand.
Allegation - An assertion, declaration or statement of
a party to an action made in a pleading, stating what he expects
to prove.
Alleged - (allegation) Stated; recited; claimed; asserted; charged.
Answer - A formal response to a claim, admitting or denying
the allegations in the claim.
Appeal - Review of a case by a higher court.
Appearance - 1. The formal proceeding by which a defendant
submits to the jurisdiction of the court. 2. A written notification
to the plaintiff by an attorney stating the he is representing
the defendant.
Arbitration - the hearing and settlement of a dispute
between opposing parties by a third party whose decision the
parties have agreed to accept.
At issue - The time in a lawsuit when the complaining
party has stated his claim and the other side has responded
with denial and the matter is ready to be tried,
Attorney at law - A lawyer; one who is licensed to act
as a representative for another in a legal matter or proceeding.
Attorney of record - An attorney , named in the records
of a case, who is responsible for handling the cause on behalf
of the party he represents.
Bankruptcy - A legal proceeding where a person or business
is relieved of paying certain debts.
Best evidence - Primary evidence; the best evidence which
is available; any evidence falling short of this standard is
secondary.
Brief - A legal document, prepared by an attorney which
presents the law and facts supporting his client's case
Burden of proof - Measure of proof required to prove
a fact. Obligation of a party to probe facts at issue in the
trial of a case.
Calendar - List of cases arranged for hearing in court.
Caption - The caption of a pleading, or other papers
connected with a case in court, is the heading or introductory
clause which shows the names of the parties, name of the court,
number of the case, etc.
Case - Any proceeding, action, cause, lawsuit or controversy
initiated through the court system by filing a complaint, petition,
indictment or information.
Caseload - The number of cases a judge handles in a specific
time period.
Cause of action - A legal claim.
Certificate under penalty of perjury - A written statement,
certified by the maker as being under penalty of perjury. In
many circumstances, it may be used in lieu of an affidavit.
Certiorari - Procedure for removing a case from a lower
court or administrative agency to a higher court for review.
Challenge for cause - A request by a party that the court
excuse a specific juror on the basis that the juror is biased.
Citation - Summons to appear in court. 2. Reference to
authorities in support of a legal argument.
Civil law - All law that is not criminal law. Usually
pertains to the settlement of disputes between individuals,
organizations or groups and having to do with the establishment,
recovery or redress of private and civil rights.
Claim - The assertion of a right to money or property.
Clerk of the court - An officer of a court whose principal
duty is to maintain court records and preserve evidence presented
during a trial.
Closing argument - The closing statement, by counsel,
to the trier of facts after all parties have concluded their
presentation of evidence.
Code - A collection, compendium or revision of laws systematically
arranged into chapters, table of contents and index and promulgated
by legislative authority.
Commit - To lawfully send a person to prison, a reformatory
or an asylum
Common law - Law which derives its authority solely from
usage and customs of immemorial antiquity or from the judgments
and decrees of courts. also called "case law."
Comparative negligence - Negligence of a plaintiff in
a civil suit which decreases his recovery by his percentage
of negligence compared to a defendant's negligence.
Competency - In the law of evidence, the presence of
those characteristics which render a witness legally fit and
qualified to give testimony.
Complaint - 1. (criminal) Formal written charge that
a person has committed a criminal offense. 2. (civil) Initial
document entered by the plaintiff which states the claims against
the defendant.
Contempt of court - Any act that is meant to embarrass,
hinder or obstruct a court in the administration of justice.
Direct contempt is committed in the presence of the court; indirect
contempt is when a lawful order is not carried out or refused.
Continuance - Adjournment of the proceedings in a case
from one day to another.
Corroborating evidence - Evidence supplementary to that
already given and tending to strengthen or confirm it.
Costs - An allowance for expenses in prosecuting or defending
a suit. Ordinarily does not include attorney's fees.
Counter claim - Claim presented by a defendant in opposition
to, or deduction from, the claim of the plaintiff.
Court - 1. Place where justice is administered. 2. Judge
or judges sitting on the court administering justice.
Court administrator - Manager of administrative, non
judicial affairs of the court.
Court commissioner - A judicial officer at both trial
and appellate court levels who performs many of the same duties
as judges and justices.
Court of appeals - Intermediate appellate court to which
most appeals are taken from superior court.
Court superior - State trial court of general jurisdiction.
Court supreme - "Court of last resort." Highest
court in the state and final appellate court.
Courts of limited jurisdiction - Includes district, municipal
and police courts.
Crime - Conduct declared unlawful by a legislative body
and for which there is a punishment of a jail or prison term,
a fine or both.
Criminal law - Body of law pertaining to crimes against
the state or conduct detrimental to society as a whole. Violation
of criminal statues are punishable by law.
Cross examination - The questioning of a witness by the
party opposed to the one who produced the witness.
Damages - Compensation recovered in the courts by a person
who has suffered loss, detriment or injury to his/her person,
property or rights, through the unlawful act or negligence of
another.
De novo - "Anew." A trial de novo is a completely
new trial held in a higher or appellate court as if the original
trial had never taken place.
Declamatory judgment - A judgment that declares the rights
of the parties on a question of law.
Decree - Decision or order of the court. A final decree
completes the suit; an interlocutory decree is a provisional
or preliminary decree which is not final.
Default - A failure of a party to respond in a timely
manner to a pleading; a failure to appear for trial.
Defendant - 1 (criminal) Person charged with a crime.
2. (civil) Person against whom a civil action is brought.
Defense attorney - The attorney who represents the defendant.
Deposition - Sworn testimony taken and recorded in an
authorized place outside of the courtroom, according to the
rules of the court.
Direct examination - The questioning of a witness by
the party who produced the witness.
Discovery - A pretrial proceeding where a party to an
action may be informed about (or "discover") the facts
known by other parties or witnesses.
Dismissal with prejudice - Dismissal of a case by a judge
which bars the losing losing party from raising the issue again
in another lawsuit.
Dismissal without prejudice - The losing party is permitted
to sue again with the same cause of action.
Disposition - 1. Determination of a charge; termination
of any legal action; 2. A sentence of a juvenile offender.
Dissent - The disagreement of one or more judges of a
court with the decision of the majority.
Docket - Book containing entries of all proceedings in
a court.
Due process - Constitutional guarantee that an accused
person receive a fair and impartial trial.
En banc "On the bench." All judges of a court sitting
together to hear a case.
Enjoin - To require a person to perform, or abstain or
desist from some act.
Evidence - Any form of proof legally presented at a trial
through witnesses, records, documents, etc.
Exception - A formal objection of an action of the court,
during the trial of a case, in refusing a request or overruling
an objection; implying that the party excepting does not acquiesce
in the decision of the court and will seek to obtain its reversal.
Exhibit - Paper, document or other object received by
the court as evidence during a trial or hearing.
Expert evidence - Testimony given by those qualified
to speak with authority regarding scientific, technical or professional
matters.
Fact-findinq hearing - A proceeding where facts relevant
to deciding a controversy are determined.
Fair Preponderance-- Evidence sufficient to create in
the minds of the triers of fact the belief that the party which
bears the burden of proof has established its case.
Felony - A crime of grave nature than a misdemeanor.
Fine - A sum of money imposed upon a convicted person
as punishment for a criminal offense.
File - 1. The complete court record of a case. 2. "To
file" a paper is to give it to the court clerk for inclusion
in the case record. 3. A folder in a law office (of a case,
a client, business records, etc.)
Fraud - An intentional perversion of truth; deceitful
practice or device resorted to with intent to deprive another
of property or other right or in some manner do him/her injury.
General jurisdiction - Refers to courts that have no
limit on the types of criminal and civil cases they may hear.
Superior courts are courts of general jurisdiction.
Grand Jury - A body of persons sworn to inquire into
crime and, if appropriate, bring accusations (indictments) against
the suspected criminals.
Guardian ad litem - A person appointed by a court to
manage the interests of a minor or incompetent person whose
property is involved in litigation.
Hearing - An in-court proceeding before a judge, generally
open to the public.
Hearsay - Evidence based on what the witness has heard
someone else say, rather than what the witness has personally
experienced or observed.
Hung Jury - A jury whose members cannot agree on a verdict.
Hypothetical question - A combination of facts and circumstances,
assumed or proved, stated in such a form as to constitute a
coherent state of facts upon which the opinion of an expert
can be asked by way of evidence in a trial.
Immunity - Freedom from duty or penalty.
Impeachment of a witness - An attack on the credibility
of a witness by the testimony of other witnesses.
Inadmissible - That which, under the established rules
of evidence, cannot be admitted or received.
Induction - Writ or order by a court prohibiting a specific
action from being carried out by a person or group.
Informed consent - A person's agreement to allow something
to happen (such as surgery) that is based on a full disclosure
of facts needed to make the decision intelligently.
Injure
- 1. Hurt or harm 2. Violate the legal rights of another person.
Instruction - Direction given by a judge regarding the
applicable law in a given case.
Interrogatories - Written questions developed by one
party's attorney for the opposing party. Interrogatories must
be answered under oath within a specific period of time.
Intervention - Proceeding in a suit where a third person
is allowed, with the court's permission, to join the suit as
a party.
Judge - An elected or appointed public official with
authority to hear and decide cases in a court of law.
Judgment - Final determination by a court of the rights
and claims of the parties in an action.
Judge pro tem - Temporary judge.
Jurisdiction-- Authority of a court to exercise judicial
power.
Jurisprudence - The science of law.
Juror - Member of a jury.
Jury - Specific number of people (usually 6 or 12), selected
as prescribed by law to render a decision (verdict) in a trial.
Law - The combination of those rules and principles of
conduct promulgated by legislative authority, derived from court
decisions and established by local custom.
Law clerks - Persons trained in the law who assist the
judges in researching legal opinions.
Lawsuit - A civil action; a court proceeding to enforce
a right (rather than to convict a criminal).
Lawyer - A person licensed to practice law; other words
for "lawyer" include: attorney, counsel, solicitor
and barrister
Lay - non-professional; for example: a lawyer would call
a non-lawyer a lay person and a doctor would call a non-doctor
a lay person.
Lay advocate - a paralegal who specializes in representing
persons in administrative hearings
Leading question - One which suggests to a witness the
answer desired. Prohibited on direct examination.
Limited jurisdiction - Refers to courts that are limited
in the types of criminal and civil cases they may hear. District,
municipal and police courts are courts of limited jurisdiction.
Litigant - One who is engaged in a lawsuit.
Litigation - Contest in court; a law suit.
Magistrate - Court official with limited authority.
Malpractice. Professional misconduct or unreasonable
lack of skill. A claim of malpractice must prove two things.
One, you must prove that you could have won your case were it
not for your lawyer's negligence. And, secondly, you must prove
that your lawyer's actions were negligent.
Mandate - Command from a court directing the enforcement
of a judgment, sentence or decree.
Misdemeanor - Criminal offenses less than felonies; generally
those punishable by fine or imprisonment of less than 90 days
in a local facility. A gross misdemeanor is a criminal offense
for which an adult could be sent to jail for up to one year,
pay a fine up to $5,000 or both.
Mistrial - Erroneous or invalid trial. Usually declared
because of prejudicial error in the proceedings or when there
was a hung jury.
Mitigating circumstances - Those which do not constitute
a justification or excuse for an offense but which may be considered
as reasons for reducing the degree of blame.
Motion - Oral or written request made by a party to an
action before, during or after a trial upon which a court issues
a ruling or order.
Moot - Unsettled; undecided. A moot point is one not
settled by judicial decisions.
Negligence - The absence of ordinary care.
Oath - Written or oral pledge by a person to keep a promise
or speak the truth.
Objection - Statement by an attorney taking exception
to testimony or the attempted admission of evidence and opposing
its consideration as evidence.
Of counsel - Phrase used to identify attorneys that are
employed by a party to assist in the preparation and management
of a case but who are not the principal attorneys of record
in the case.
Offender - 1. A person who has committed a felony, as
established by state law and is eighteen years of age or older.
2. A person who is less than eighteen but whose felony case
has been transferred by the juvenile court to a criminal court.
Offer - 1. To make a proposal ; to present for acceptance
or rejection. 2. To attempt to have something admitted into
evidence in a trial; to introduce evidence 3. An "offer"
in contract law is a proposal to make a deal. It must be communicated
successfully from the person making it to the person to whom
it is made and it must be the person to whom it is made and
it must be definite and reasonably certain in its terms.
Omnibus hearing - A pretrial hearing normally scheduled
at the same time the trial date is established. Purpose of the
hearing is to ensure each party receives (or "discovers")
vital information concerning the case held by the other. In
addition, the judge may rule on the scope of discovery or on
the admissibility of challenged evidence.
Opening statement - The initial statement made by attorneys
for each side, outlining the facts each intends to establish
during the trial.
Opinion - statement of decision by a judge or court regarding
a case tried before it. Published opinions are printed because
they contain new legal interpretations. Unpublished opinions,
based on legal precedent, are not printed.
Opinion, per curiam - Phrase used to distinguish an opinion
of the whole court from an opinion written by only one judge.
Overrule - 1. Court's denial of any motion or point raised
to the court. 2. To overturn or void a decision made in a prior
case.
Parties - Persons, corporations, or associations, who
have commenced a law suit or who are defendants.
Peremptory challenge - Procedure which parties in an
action may use to reject prospective jurors without giving reason.
Each side is allowed a limited number of such challenges.
Petition - Written application to a court requesting
a remedy available under law.
Petition for review - A document filed in the state Supreme
Court asking for a review of a decision made by the Court of
Appeals.
Perjury - Making intentionally false statements under
oath. Perjury is a criminal offense.
Plaintiff - The party who begins an action; the party
who complains or sues in an action and is named as such in the
court's records. Also called a petitioner.
Plea - A defendant's official statement of "guilty"
or "not guilty" to the charge(s) made against him.
Pleadings - Formal, written allegations by the parties
of their respective claims.
Polling the jury - A practice whereby the jurors are
asked individually whether they agreed, and still agree, with
the verdict.
Power of attorney - Document authorizing another to act
as one's agent or attorney in fact (not an attorney at law).
Precedent - Previously decided case which is recognized
as an authority for determining future cases.
Preponderance of evidence - The general standard of proof
in civil cases. The weight of evidence presented by one side
is more convincing to the trier of facts than the evidence presented
by the opposing side.
Presiding judge - Chief or administrative judge of a
court.
Probate - The legal process of establishing the validity
of a will and settling an estate.
Proceeding - Any hearing or court appearance related
to the adjudication of a case.
Record - 1. To preserve in writing, print or by film,
tape, etc. 2. History or a case. 3. The word-for-word (verbatim)
written or tape recorded account of all proceedings of a trial.
Record on appeal - The portion of the record of a court
of limited jurisdiction necessary to allow a superior court
to review the case.
Reasonable doubt - An accused person is entitled to acquittal
if, in the minds of the jury, his guilt has not been proved
beyond a "reasonable doubt". That state of mind of
jurors in which they cannot say they feel an abiding conviction
as to the truth of the charge.
Rebuttal - The introduction of contradicting or opposing
evidence showing that what witnesses said occurred is not true,
the stage of a trial at which such evidence may be introduced.
Redirect examination - Follows cross examination and
is carried out by the party who, first examined the witness.
Remand - To send back. A disposition by an appellate
court that results in sending the case back to the original
court from which it came for further proceedings.
Reply - Pleading by the plaintiff in response to the
defendant's written answer.
Respondent - 1. Party against whom an appeal is brought
in an appellate court. the prevailing party in the trial court
case. 2. A juvenile offender.
Restitution - Act of giving the equivalent for any loss,
damage of injury.
Rests the case - When a party concludes his presentation
or evidence.
Reversal - Setting aside, annulling, vacating or changing to
the contrary the decision of a lower court or other body.
Service - Delivery of a legal document to the opposite
party.
Set aside - Annul or void as in "setting aside"
a judgment.
Settlement - 1. Conclusion of a legal matter. 2. Compromise
agreement by opposing parties in a civil suit before judgment
is made, eliminating the need for the judge to resolve the controversy.
Settlement conference - A meeting between parties of
a lawsuit, their counsel and a judge to attempt a resolution
of the dispute without trial.
Statute - A law created by the Legislature.
Statute of limitations - Law which specifies the time
within which parties must take judicial action to enforce their
rights.
Stay - Halting of a judicial proceeding by order of the
court.
Stipulation - Agreement by the attorneys or parties on
opposite sides of a case regarding any matter in the trial proceedings.
Subpoena - Document issued by the authority of the court
to compel a witness to appear and give testimony or produce
documentary evidence in a proceeding. Failure to appear or produce
is punishable by contempt of court.
Subpoena duces tecum - "Under penalty you shall
take it with you." A process by which the court commands
a witness to produce specific documents or records in a trial.
Suit - Any court proceeding in which an individual seeks
a decision.
Summons - Document or writ directing the sheriff or other
officer to notify a person that an action has been commenced
against him in court and that he is required to appear, on a
certain day, and answer the complaint in such action.
Testimony - Any statement made by a witness under oath
in a legal proceeding.
Tort - An injury or wrong committed, with or without
force, to the person or property of another, which gives rise
to a claim for damages.
Transcript - The official record or proceedings in a
trial or hearing, which is kept by the clerk.
Trial - The presentation of evidence in court to a trier
of facts who applies the applicable law to those facts and then
decides the case
Trier of facts - The jury or, in a non-jury trial, the
judge, or an administrative body.
Venue - The specific county, city or geographical area
in which a court has jurisdiction.
Verdict - Formal decision made by a judge or jury (trier
of facts).
Voir dire - (pronounced "vwar-deer") - "To
speak the truth." The process of preliminary examination
of prospective jurors, by the court or attorneys, regarding
their qualifications.
Willful act - An intentional act carried out without
justifiable cause.
Witness - Person who testifies under oath before a court,
regarding what he/she has seen, heard or otherwise observed.
Writ - A special, written court order directing a person
to perform, or refrain from performing, a specific act.
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Cerebral
Palsy Causes
Below are examples of known causes of cerebral palsy. Unfortunately,
this condition is not always explainable.
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But
when it results from a birth injury, a law firm such as ours can investigate to find what went wrong. Click here for a free birth
injury evaluation.
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In general, cerebral palsy is a condition caused by restricted
or delayed oxygen flow to the brain in the unborn or newborn
baby. Severity depends upon the section of brain affected.
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Specifically,
the damage results from inadequate blood flow to the brain and/or
inadequate concentrations of oxygen in brain tissue.
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Other,
less common factors can contribute to brain damage causes of
cerebral palsy, such as unusual viruses, mother-child blood
type conflict, or accidental head trauma.
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This
unfortunate disability is sometimes not preventable. However,
mistreatment or poor diagnosis of pregnancy complications, or
mishandling of the baby during birth, are often contributing
factors that should have been prevented.
[More]
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