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.