NALA Exam

Certified Paralegal Exam

Acquittal

The legal declaration that a person who has been charged with a crime is not guilty.

Aggravated Assault

is the intent to create a more serious crime such as assault with intent to commit murder or rape.

Appeal

A proceeding undertaken to have a decision reconsidered by bringing it to a higher authority, also known as an appellate court; the party challenging the lower court's ruling is the appellant, the party against whom the appeal is taken is the appellee

Assault

The threat or use of force on another that causes a person to have a reasonable apprehension of imminent harmful or offensive contact.

Arraignment

A criminal proceeding where the accused is notified of the charges against him/her and where he/she must enter a plea of "guilty" or "not guilty"

Arrest Warrant

must: identify the defendant, describe the offense, command the arrest and bringing to court, signed by a judge

Arson

Malicious purposeful burning of a structure that endangers other people or property.

Actus Reas

the physical act that comprises the wrongful-deed aspect of a crime

Bail / Bail Reform Act

Reasonably assures that the defendant is not a flight risk, not a danger to the community.

Bail Bond

Federal courts generally do not require posting money or property.

Battery

in criminal law, a use of force that results in harmful contact; in civil law, and intentional and offensive touching of another without lawful justification.

Burden of Proof

The determination of which party has the duty to prove a disputed assertion or charge

Burglary

a crime defined both in common law and by statute, involving entering a structure with the purpose of committing a crime.

Capital Offense

A crime for which the penalty may be death.

common law

the body of law based on the English legal system derived from judicial decisions rather than from statutes or constitution sand uses case law and precedent to establish the rule of law

Complaint

in a non-criminal action, the initial pleading that starts an action and states the basis for the court's jurisdiction, the cause of action and the demand for relief, in criminal law, the formal charge accusing a person of an offense.

Exclusionary Rule

A sales-contract provision that limits the remedies available to a party if another party breaches the contract.

Exculpatory evidence

evidence tending to establish a criminal defendant's innocence

Expungement

the removal of a conviction from a person's criminal record

Perjury

a material false or misleading statement made while under oath

Plea

an accused person's formal response of "guilty" or "not guilty"or "no contest" to a criminal charge.

Plea Bargain

A negotiated agreement between a prosecutor and a criminal defendant whereby the defendant pleads guilty or no contest to a lesser offense or to one of multiple charges in exchange for some concession by the prosecutor, usu. a more lenient sentence or a dismissal of the other charges.

Precedent

the making of law by a court by recognizing and applying previously decided cases which involve similar facts or issues to the case at bar

probable cause

in criminal law, a reasonable ground to suspect that a person has committed or is committing a crime, which forms the basic requirement for allowing an arrest, search or seizure of a person

probabtion

a court imposed criminal sentence that, subject to stated conditions, releases a convicted person in tho the community instead of sending the criminal to jail or prison, usu. on condition of routinely checking in with a probation officer over a specified period of time.

Prosecution

a criminal proceeding in which an accused person (defendant) is tried; the case is tried by the prosecutor, sometimes also called the district or state attorney.

Rape

unlawful sexual intercourse without consent

reasonable doubt

the standard of guilt or innocence in a criminal trial; to be found guilty, the evidence must show guilt "beyond a reasonable doubt"

recklessness

1)conduct whereby the actor does not desire harmful consequence but nonetheless foresees the possibility and consciously takes the risk. 2)The state of mind in which a person does not care about the consequences of his or her actions.

concurrent sentence

Two or more sentences of jail time to be served simultaneously

conviction

1) The act or process of judicially finding someone guilty of a crime; the state of having been proved guilty. 2) The judgment (as by a jury verdict) that a person is guilty of a crime.

count

in a complaint or other court pleading, the statement of a distinct claim or cause of action

court-appointed attorney

crime

an act that the law makes punishable, or the breach of a legal duty treated as the subject matter of a criminal proceeding

crime against the person

A crime (such as rape, robbery, or pickpocketing) that is committed against an individual's person.

crime against property

A category of criminal offenses in which the perpetrator seeks to derive an unlawful benefit from - or do damage to - another's property without the use or threat of force.

criminal negligence

gross negligence so extreme that it is punishable as a crime. For example: involuntary manslaughter or other negligent homicide can be based on criminal negligence, as when an extremely careless automobile driver kills someone.

custody

The care and control of a thing or person for inspection, preservation, or security.

defendant

a person sued in a civil proceeding or accused in a criminal proceeding

double jeopardy

Prohibited by the Bill of Rights, it is being prosecuted or sentenced twice for substantially the same offense

due process

The conduct of legal proceedings according to established rules and principles for the protection and enforcement of private rights; includes the concepts of "fundamental fairness" and basic rights of procedure

Elements of a crime

embezzlement

The fraudulent taking of personal property with which one has been entrusted, esp. as a fiduciary.

entrapment

a law-enforcement officer's or government agent's inducement of a person to commit a crime, by means of fraud or undue persuasion, in an attempt to cause a criminal prosecution against that person

evidence

Testimony, documents, tangible objects, or the like that are offered to the court to be part of a case to prove or disprove the existence of an alleged fact

extradition

the official surrender of an alleged criminal by one state or country to another having jurisdiction over the crime charged;

Felony

a serious crime usually entailing more than a year in prison; compare with a misdemeanor

Forcibile rape

recidivism

a tendency to relapse into a habit of criminal behavior

robbery

The illegal taking of property from the person of another or in the person's presence by violence or intimidation; aggravated larceny.

Search Warrant

criminal law. A judge's written order authorizing a law-enforcement officer to conduct a search of a specified place and to seize evidence.

selective incorporation doctrine

the incorporation of certain provisions of the bill of rights.

sentence

the punishment by a court of a defendant after a finding of guilt

sentencing guidelines

Criminal procedure. A set of standards for determining the punishment that a convicted criminal should receive based on the nature of the crime and the offender's criminal history.

specific intent

The intent is to accomplish the precise criminal act that one is later charged with.

plea bargain

A negotiated agreement between a prosecutor and a criminal defendant whereby the defendant pleads guilty or no contest to a lesser offense or to one of multiple charges in exchange for some concession by the prosecutor, usu. a more lenient sentence or a dismissal of the charges.

Forgery

The act of fraudulently making a false document or altering a real one to be used as if genuine. Intent to deceive.

fraud

a knowing misrepresentation or knowing concealment of a material fact made to induce another to act to his or her detriment.

general intent

The intent to perform an action even though the actor does not desire the consequences that result

Habeas Corpus

Latin " you should have the body" is a writ before a court, most frequently used to ensure that a party's imprisonment or detention is not illegal

inculpatory evidence

Evidence showing or tending to show one's involvement in a crime or wrong.

indictment

the formal written accusation of a crime against a person , made by a grand jury

infraction

violation, usu. of a rule or local ordinance, and usu. not punishable by incarceration

Jurisdiction

a court's general power ot exercis authority over a matter

Larceny

The unlawful taking of someone else's personal property, with intent to permanently deprive that person of it.

Malum in se

An act considered illegal by its nature, compare with malum prohibitum

Malum Prohibitum

An act that is a crime because it is prohibited by statute, although not necessarily itself immoral; compare with malum in se

manslaughter

the unlawful killing of a human being without malice; compare with murder

mitigation

to make less severe or intense; to make less harmful, unpleasant, or seriously bad.

mens rea

criminal intent

miranda rights

Must be informed that they have the right to remain silent, the right to have an attorney present, right to appointment of an attorney if you can't afford

murder

the unlawful killing of a human being with malice; compare with manslaughter

nolo contendere

latin "I will not contest it." in a criminal case, when the defendant neither admits nor denies the charges against him/her

pardon

an official act of nullifying the legal consequences of a crime

parole

The conditional release of a prisoner from imprisonment before the full sentence has been served.

standard of proof

the level of proof demanded in a specific case

statute

a law passed by a legislative body

statutory rape

Intercourse with a male or female who is underage. regardless of consent.

specific intent

The intent is to accomplish the precise criminal act that one is later charged with.

transferred intent

occurs when there is "collateral damage" in a crime

strict liability

legal responsibility that does not depend on actual fault, but merely because of a duty to make a product safe

sua sponte

Latin "of its own accord" when a court acts on its own initiative rather than on a motion

venue

a possible proper place for a lawsuit to procced

verdict

a trier of fact's decision on the factual issues of a case

warrant

a writ directing someone to do an act