| A | B |
|---|
| Juriprudence | The study of Law and/or Legal Philosophy |
| Human Rights | basic privileges a person has as a human being |
| Reservations | a legal way of making a provision less enforceable than it might otherwise be |
| criminal laws | the branch of law dealing with crimes and their punishment |
| felonies | a serious criminal offense punishable by a prison sentence of more than one year |
| misdemeanors | a criminal offense, less serious than a felony, punishable by a prison sentence of one year or less |
| civil laws | all law that does not involve criminal matters and usually deals with private rights of individuals, groups or businesses |
| civil action | a noncriminal lawsuit, brought to enforce a right or redress a wrong |
| defendant | the person against whom a claim is made. In a civil suit the person being sued; in a criminal case, the person charged with committing the crime |
| plaintiff | in a civil case, the injured party who brings legal action against the alleged wrongdoer |
| prosecutor | the state or federal government's attorney in a criminal case |
| beyond a reasonable doubt | the level of proof required to convict a person of a crime. |
| preponderance of the evidence | usually the standard of proof used in a civil suit |
| statutes | written laws enacted by legislatures |
