Glossary Of Basic Legal Terms

Bail: money paid to the court to guarantee the defendant’s attendance at court at a later date. Money paid is more commonly known as a bail bond

Bankruptcy: a process governed by federal law where a person cannot pay bills when due and payable – chapter 7 and chapter 13 bankruptcy actions

Beneficiary: the person named as such in a will or insurance policy. A beneficiary may also be the equitable named person under a trust, where the legal owner is the trustee

Board of Directors: a group of individuals who run a company on behalf of the shareholders

Brief: a legal document that sets out the legal arguments in a lawsuit

Burden of Proof : is the duty, in law, to show, according to the facts, that the allegations to the lawsuit are either false or true – depending on the nature of the case

Capital Gain / Loss: the profit or loss, as the case may be, from the sale of an asset – such as your home. Ordinarily, but not always, capital gain will be taxed

Cause of Action: is the reason/grounds on which the legal action is being submitted/brought

Caveat Emptor: Latin meaning “buyer beware”, this legal doctrine means that if you do not take due care when buying something, you cannot take your case before the courts

Certified Copy: also known as “certified true copy”, this is a document signed as being a true copy of the original

Certify: to testify in writing

Class Action Lawsuit: is where two or more plaintiffs join together to bring a case against another

Collateral : is the security you agree to put down on a loan and which you will have to forfeit in the event that you cannot repay the loan – also known as “security”

Complaint: is a civil law action that initiates a lawsuit

Condition: are circumstances which are essential to the ascertain of a right; for example, it may be a condition to a loan that you give security, without giving security, you do not have the right to the loan

Conflict of Interest: means that you have competing interests in something that would make it difficult or impossible for you to fulfill your duty impartially

Consideration: is the thing, usually money, which you pay, under a contract, in exchange for getting something else

Contract: is a legal agreement entered into between two or more persons, known as “parties to the contract”, whereby an offer is made and accepted

Costs: the sum awarded to the successful party to a lawsuit – and usually amount to the “costs”, including legal fees, of having brought the case

Counsel: legal representative: lawyer or attorney

Creditor: someone to whom you owe money

Custodian: person appointed to manage and disperse funds on behalf of a child – unlike a trustee, a custodian is normally a court order persons

More Legal Terms:

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