Paralegal Essential Skills – Legal Terms

estate

all property and liabilities left by someone who has died

civil law

roman law, violations do not directly harm the community, the person harmed sues the violator

court

the tribunal or forum where the trial occurs, as well as the judge himself, the judge is the trier of law at the trial

liable

legally responsible

damages

an amount of money paid to atone for injury or economic loss

doctrine

a legal concept generally accepted by most courts which, although often not law, offers guidance to the court; legislatures will sometimes codify/make into law, a popular doctrine

joint and several liability

when multiple defendants may be found liable as a group or separately

retainer

money paid to an attorney to secure their services; also refers to contract btwn attorney and client; attorney works in representative capacity on behalf of the client

appearance

when an attorney acts on behalf of a client in court; may be personal appearance in front of judge or filing a document with the court (complaint or motion)

attorney-of-record

once an attorney has entered an appearance, they are the _____ in the case

venue

place of trial, physical location

diversity of citizenship

when a federal court hears a case based upon the fact that the parties are from different states, and that the amount of money claimed as damages exceeds a minimum set by federal statute (currently $75k)

plaintiff

the party who initiates the action by filing a complaint, claiming injury or harm

statute of limitations

the time limit for filing suit. suits filed after this has run out will be dismissed; clock begins ticking at the time damages occurred

summons

aka citation (in TX), document that informs the defendant that they are being sued with a specified amount of time to respond

complaint

the pleading that initiates litigation; filed by plaintiff, contains the general allegations against the defendant; served with the summons

parties

individuals or groups involved in a legal action

cause of acution

legally valid reason to sue; one of the required elements of a complaint

information and belief

common legal phrase that qualifies a statement as being a fact only to the best knowledge of the person making the statement

defendant

party against whom a complaint is filed

ad damnum clause

element of a complaint that asks for damages; aka ‘wherefore clause’ or ‘prayer for relief’

co-defendants

multiple defendants in a legal action

pleading

document filed with the court asking court to take specific action; states a party’s position in a legal action

allegation

fact claimed by a party

jury trial

group of citizens selected from the community to determine the outcome of a case; either party has the right to demand this, but if both agree, judge may act in place of this; most common in technical cases (ex: complex contracts)

filed/filing

document is ____ when it is presented to the clerk of the court; all docs and copies are date stamped by clerk of the court at time of ___

service or servec

presentation of legal papers

service of process

delivery of the summons and complaint upon defendant in a court action; usually done in person

personal service

service of legal papers upon an individual vs. business or registered agent

process server

person who is permitted by law to serve legal documents, must be 18+ and not a party to the action

affidavit

written statement of fact sworn to under oath

affiant

one who signs an affidavit

attest

to swear

notary public

person authorized to administer the oat and to verify that an individual signs a legal document

jurisdiction

authority of a court to hear and decide a case

in personam jurisdiction

jurisdiction over a person

in rem jurisdiction

jurisdiction over the controversy, often property

quasi in rem jurisdiction

jurisdiction over property, even though property is not the controversy

lis pendens

attachment to the title of a piece of property notifying any potential purchasers that the title is subject to the outcome of litigation

lien

attachment to the title of a piece of property preventing its sale until a previous financial obligation has been satisfied

rules of court

laws that govern the procedures of trials

answer

the pleading filed by the defendant in response to the allegations contained in the complaint

affirmative defense

an admission that a specific act did occur, arguing that the fault lies not with the defendant; intended to eliminate or reduce plaintiff’s damages

counterclaim

claim by the defendant against the plaintiff, sometimes the only determining factor as to whether a claim is an affirmative defense or a ____is whether the defendant is alleging damages. if this is the case, it becomes a ____; in essence is a pleading presenting the defendant’s complaint against the plaintiff

cross claim

a claim by one defendant against a co-defendant; one form of ___ occurs when one original defendant sues another original defendant, but third-party complaints are also ____

third-party complaint

pleading where a defendant sues someone not yet a party to the action

reply

this pleading is the plaintiff’s response to a defendant’s counterclaim

default judgment

a judgment by the court in favor of the plaintiff, based on the fact that the defendant failed to respond in a timely fashion

motion

a request that the court take a specific procedural step; pleadings usually state specific legal positions about the matter before the court, while ____ are procedural in nature and act as request for an order

litigation

the process of asking a court of law to decide the outcome of a dispute, a lawsuit

contest

to challenge

discovery

the methods whereby one party obtains relevant information on a case form the other party, the method that attempts to even the playing field btwn parties by exposing all relevant facts for the court to base its decision. directly btwn parties and will have certificate of mailing for each doc filed

interrogatories

discovery method, written questions to the opposing party that must be answered under penalty of perjury (ex: describe the events leading to the accident)

request for admissions

discovery method, written statements the opposing party must admit or deny under penalty of perjury. failure to respond within a specific amount of time (usually 30 days) means statements are assumed to be admitted (ex: admit or deny you had been drinking before the accident)

request for production

discovery method, request that docs or other physical items be provided for inspection, aka ‘request for inspection of property or production of documents

request for mental or physical examination

discovery method, request that the other party (usually plaintiff) be subjected to mental or physical examination; may require court approval to prevent use as intimidation

depositions

discovery method, oral questions that must be answered under oath; take place outside of court usually in an attorney’s office with court reporter transcribing testimony. attorney’s from both sides must be present, can take place to ask opposing party questions or witnesses; sometimes videotaped or audio recorded

certificate of mailing/service

attached to docs filed in court or when discovery is sent to a party; attests that a true and correct copy of the document was sent to all parties involved in the litigation; should be signed by person who puts it in mail unless state requires attorney signature; replaced with receipt of copy if doc delivered in person

order

an official command by the court, usually demanding that one or both of the parties perform an act

hearing

a proceeding in court, where the judge and both parties are present

privilege

the right to refuse to testify or to prevent someone else from testifying

ex parte hearing

a hearing at which only one party is present, such as a hearing on a motion for a restraining order; not common

third-party defendant

party against whom the third-party complaint was filed; defendant in the original complaint becomes ‘third-party plaintiff’

motion to dismiss

asking the court to end a case without going to trial

dismissal with prejudice

a case is dismissed and may not be brought again bc the court made up its mind about a case

dismissal without prejudice

a case is dismissed but may be filed again, bc the court has not made up its mind about the matter

trial brief

aka trial memorandum/points and authorities, doc is filed with the court to argue a legal case, relying on law to support the party’s position. often filed in support of a motion, attempts to convince the reader and only argues points favorable to client

motion for summary judgment

pretrial motion asking court to determine the outcome of the case based on the pleadings and motions rather than going to trial with a jury; argument is there are no material facts in dispute, only law, and since jury is trier of factt —> no need for jury or trial

partial summary judgment

motion that limits the issues that will be dealt with at trial, successful _____ determines the outcome of some, but not all issues before the court

magistrate

a judicial officer who may preside over hearings; does not have all the power of a judge but ordinarily deals with procedural matters

pretrial conference

a meeting between the court and parties for clarification of procedural matters and to promote settlement

stipulation

an agreement between counsel for the parties regarding a fact, issue, or point that will not be disputed at trial

settlement agreement (settlement)

an agreement to end the litigation for an agreed-upon consideration, usually money

at issue/in issue

a legal question to be answered by the court

evidence

that which tends to establish or disprove a fact

direct evidence

evidence (from personal observation) that tends to establish a fact without the need for an inference (ex: a witness who sees a gun fired can give ___ testimony as to a shooting)

circumstantial evidence

evidence of one fact that requires an inference to establish another fact (ex: a witness who hear a shot, turns around and sees a man holding a gun —> can give ____ evidence to a shooting)

oral evidence

evidence given orally, aka testimonial evidence

physical evidence

evidence that can be touched, aka tangible/demonstrative evidence

admissible

the evidence that will be allowed to be considered by the jury; the jury will decide whether to belief the evidence

docket

the court’s official calendar for trials and hearings to take place in that courtroom

set for trial

to set a date for trial upon which the attorneys, parties, and court agree

jury, jurors

a group of citizens who will be called upon to hear the evidence and render a verdict; the ____ is the trier of fact

jury panel

the group from which a jury will be selected

voir dire

to question prospective jurors

challenge for cause

a method of dismissing a juror for good cause shown; examples are unlimited in number

preemptory challenge

a method of dismissing a juror for which no reason need be given; these are limited in number (3-6)

bailiff

court employee who keeps order in the courtroom

alternate juror

person who sits to hear the entire case with the jury, but who will not deliberate or vote on a verdict unless one of the jurors is dismissed

opening statement

presentations made by the attorneys at the beginning of trial, stating the facts they intend to prove during the trial

burden of proof

degree to which something must be proved at trial; the party making the allegation or claim generally has ____

preponderance of the evidence