Chapter 3: Classification of the Law
Affirmative Defense
A defense whereby the defendant offers new evidence to avoid judgment.
Defense
A fact or legal argument that would relieve the defendant of liability in a civil care of guilt in a criminal case.
Cause of Action
A claim that based on the law and the facts is sufficient to support a lawsuit. If the plaintiff does not state a valid cause of action in the complaint, the court will dismiss it.
Double Jeopardy
A constitutional protection against being tried twice for the same crime.
Personal Property
All property that is not real property.
Contract
An agreement supported by consideration.
Legal Fiction
An assumption that something that is not real is real - for example, saying that a corporation is a person for purposes of its being able to sue and be sued.
Actus Reus
Bad act.
Mens Rea
Bad intent.
Real Property
Land and objects permanently attached to land.
Property Law
Law dealing with ownership.
Substantive Law
Law that creates rights and duties.
Tort Law
Law that deals with harm to a person or a person's property.
Civil Law
Law that deals with harm to an individual.
Criminal Law
Law that deals with harm to society as a whole.
Procedural Law
Law that regulates how the legal system operates.
Strict Liability
Liability without a showing of fault.
Damages
Monetary compensation, including compensatory, punitive, and nominal damages.
Punitive Damages
Money awarded to a plaintiff in cases of intentional torts in order to punish the defendant and serve as a warning to others.
Compensatory Damages
Money awarded to a plaintiff in payment for his or her actual losses.
Doctrine of Implied Powers
Powers not stated in the Constitution but that are necessary for Congress to carry out other, expressly granted powers
Consideration
Something of value exchanged to form the basis of a contract.
Negligence
The failure to act reasonably under the circumstances.
Sovereign Immunity
The prohibition against suing the government without the government's consent.
Preponderance of the Evidence
The standard of proof most commonly used in civil trials. The evidence presented must prove that it is more likely than not the defendant committed the wrongful act.
Beyond A Reasonable Doubt
The standard of proof used in criminal trials. The evidence presented must be so conclusive and complete that there are no reasonable doubts regarding the guilt of the accused.
Clear and Convincing
The standard of proof used in some civil trials. The evidence presented must be greater than a preponderance of the evidence but less than beyond a reasonable doubt.
Assumption of the Risk
Voluntarily and knowingly subjecting oneself to danger.
Comparative Negligence
A method for measuring the relative negligence of the plaintiff and the defendant, with a commensurate sharing of the compensation for the injuries.
Misdemeanor
A minor crime not amounting to a felony, usually punishable by a fine or a jail sentence of less than a year.
Plaintiff
A person who initiates a lawsuit.
Felony
A serious crime, usually carrying a prison sentence of one or more years.
Nominal Damages
A token sum awarded when liability has been found but monetary damages cannot be shown.
Intentional Tort
A tort committed by one who intends to do the act that creates the harm.
Defendant
In a lawsuit the person who is sued; in a criminal case the person who is being charged with a crime.
Contributory Negligence
Negligence by the plaintiff that contributed to his or her injury. Normally, any finding of contributory negligence acts as a complete bar to a plaintiff's recovery.
Constructive
Not factually true, but accepted by the courts as being legally true.
Statute of Limitations
The law that sets the length of time from when something happens to when a lawsuit must be filed before the right to bring it is lost.
Preemption
The power of the federal government to prevent the states from passing conflicting laws, and sometimes even to prohibit states from passing any laws on a particular subject.
Prima Facie Case
What the prosecution or plaintiff must be able to prove in order for the case to go to the jury - that is, the elements of the prosecution's case or the plaintiff's cause of action.