court terms
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Created by:
apapenfus13 on December 1, 2011
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ap gov
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52 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 writ of certiorari | "cert" -- when a party wants its case reviewed, it asks the supreme court to direct the lower court to supply the SC with records of its case; gets your case heard; have to get 4 justices to hear your case |
| writ of mandamus | "we command" -- order a lower court or an official to platform some act (order for an official to carry out what he's supposed to do) |
| writ of error | an order issued by an appeals court to a lower court. similar to a cert, but have the appeals court asks the lower court to send it the record of a particular case so it can be reviewed for error (ask for all documents written) |
| writ of habeas corpus | usually used to bring a prisoner before the court to determine the legality of the imprisonment |
| prima facie | "at first view" "on its face" --case that doesn't require further support, the evidence in your favor is so strong that the other party must mount a defense |
| in camera | "in chambers" -- refers to meetings that are held in a judge's chambers and hence out of view of the public and why |
| per curiam | "by the court" -- a unanimous, unsigned, and usually brief opinion issued by the court |
| en banc | "in the bench" or "full bench" -- refers to court sessions with the entire membership of a court participating rather than only a quorum |
| stare decisis | "let past decisions stand" -- the doctrine to uphold precedents. It means that in similar cases, past judicial decisions shouldbe accepted as the authorities |
| a fortiori | "from the stronger" -- to draw a conclusions because on thing is true another thing must be true |
| appellant (petitioner) | loser in a lawsuit: the one bringing his case to a higher court for review of the lower court's decision |
| appellee (respondent) | person who won his case in the lower court and his being made to defend it in a higher court while it has been brought on appeal |
| brief | written document that a lawyer uses to give the court the facts essential to his case and the legal arguments that support his side |
| comity | courtesy... a rule of convenience by which one court alter's to another's jurisdiction (one court defers to another court's decision) |
| dig (dismiss certiorari as improvidently granted) | the justices may upon further deliberation decide to withdraw their grant of certiorari (changed their minds and won't hear the case); just the SC |
| ex parte | "only from one side" -- an action brought on behalf of one party who need not be notified or not participate in the action against another (ex: someone committed an offense against me but someone else will go to court for me) |
| ex rel (relatione) | "upon relation or report" -- used in case names to indicate that the suit was brought by the gov at the instigation of a private person who had interest in case's outcome |
| in forma pauperis | SC will take one case a year for free just to show you don't need money |
| in personam | an action directed against a person |
| in re | "in the matter of" -- used in the title of a case when there are no actual opponents. refers to the person who is the primary subject of the case. ex: "an act against the school system" |
| in rem | an action against a thing, ex: tax foreclosure proceeding (as opposed to personam) |
| obiter dictum (dicta) | statement made by a judge that is incidental to the question before him (judge wants to throw in his opinion) |
| pro se | "on one's own behalf" -- refers to persons who present their own cases without the benefit of lawyers |
| recusal | abstention. if a judge has personal interest in a case, he removes himself from the proceedings |
| remand | when a higher court sends a case back to the lower court for further proceedings (send something back to where it was) |
| nolo contendere | "no contest" -- for a criminal sentence, it has the same effect as a plea of guilty, but it may not be considered an admission of guilt for any other purposes |
| rule of four | an unwritten rule that a case will not be healed by the SC unless at least four justices vote to review it |
| precedent | a court decision in an earlier case with facts and law similar to those in a dispute currently before a court; based off common law |
| solicitor general | appointed by pres, he represents the us gov in cases before the SC |
| stay | an order that stops or suspends any action until some particular event occurs or the stay is lifted by the court |
| subpoena ad testificandum | a court order that commands a witness to appear and give testimony |
| subpoena duces tecum | a court order that: issued at the request of one party to a case, asking a witness to produce any relevant documents under his control (business/tax records) |
| tort (reform) | a civil wrong or breach of a duty to another person as outlined by law |
| test case | lawsuit whose purpose is to see if a law or legal principle will stand up |
| voir dire | the process by which judges and lawyers select a petit jury from among eligible to serve or an inquiry as to the foundation for certain disputed evidence |
| seriatim | "one by one" -- separate opinions were at one time written by each SC justice (abandoned in early 1800s) |
| majority opinion | written exploration of the decision handed down by a majority of the court (if chief justice is in agreement with the majority opinion he would write the majority opinion) |
| dissenting opinion | an opinion by a justice who disagrees with the majority's opinion |
| concurring opinion | an opinion that's in agreement with the result reached by the majority but disagrees with the reasoning that led the majority to its decision |
| original jurisdiction | no other court need first consider the matter; lower court arrives at decision |
| appellate jurisdiction | in cases brought on appeal from lower federal court and state courts when an issue concerning federal law is involved |
| concurrent jurisdiction | when two courts have the simultaneous ability to hear the same case |
| exclusive jurisdiction | one court has the jurisdiction (meaning state or fed) |
| statutory law | law that comes from authoritative and specific lawmaking sources, primarily legislatures but also including treaties and executive orders. legislatures make this |
| common law | judge-made law that originated in england in the twelfth century, when royal judges traveled around the country settling disputes in each locality according to prevailing custom. the common law continues to develop according to the rule of stare decisis. this is the rule of precedent, which implies that a rule established by a court is to be followed in all similar cases |
| equity law | deals with matters that don't involve contracts or laws; asks for fairness |
| constitutional law | statements interpreting the US constitution that have been given SC approval |
| admiralty and maritime law | law applicable to cases concerning shipping and waterway commerce on the high seas on the navigable waters of the united states. laws that apply to out of country |
| administrative law | law relating to the authority and procedures of administrative agencies as well as to the rules and regulations issued by those agencies |
| criminal law | states and the individual, law that defines crimes against the public order and provides for punishment |
| civil law | law that governs the relations between individuals and defines their legal rights. two individuals |
| tort laws | deals with personal injury, negligence. ex: i lost one eye, my eye is worth $50,000 but how much is my pain and suffering worth? tries to put a limit on liability or personal injury reward |
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