| A | B |
|---|
| common law | laws based on current standards of society |
| laws | enforceable rules of society |
| code | laws grouped into an organized form |
| jurisdiction | the power to decide a case |
| equity | basic fairness |
| constitutional law | when constitutions are amended |
| statutes | laws enacted by legislatures |
| ordinance | laws enacted by local agencies |
| procedural law | deals with methods of enforcing legal rights and duties |
| stare decisis | lower courts must follow established case law |
| ethics | deciding what is right and wrong in a reasoned, impartial manner |
| impartiality | idea that the same ethical standards apply to everyone |
| fundamental ethical rules | when acts themselves are judged as right or wrong |
| universalizing | imagining that everyone in the world is doing the same action |
| majority rule | when the elected representataives must vote for laws that represent the majority of the people that they represent |
| civil rights | personal, human rights guaranteed by the constitution |
| integrity | capacity to do what is right even in the face of temptation or pressure to do otherwise |
| scofflaws | people who do not respect the law |
| due process of law | fundamental fairness in compliance with reasonable and just laws |
| political party | a private organization of citizens who select and promote candidates for election to public office |
| sovereignty | freedom from external control |
| amendment | change |
| democracy | all people vote on all issues |
| republic | representatives are selected to vote for the people |
| litigate | to take a dispute to court |
| mediation | a nonbinding method of working out problems |
| arbitration | an informal hearing to listen to two sides, and the decision is binding |
| original jurisdiction | the first court to hear a case |
| appellate court | reviews decisions made by lower courts |
| transcript | verbatim record of what went on at trial |
| writ of certiorari | an order of the Supreme Court to review a case |
| justice | title given to judges who sit at Supreme Court level |
| vicarious criminal liability | when officers are held responsible for employee crimes |
| antitrust laws | law that says companies cannot divide sales regions or fix prices |
| bribery | unlawfully offering a person of authority something of value to persuade a decision |
| extortion | threatening to expose a secret if a deal is not agreed to |
| immunity | freedom from prosecution even when one is guilty |
| defense | allows a defendant to escape liability |
| plea bargaining | accepting a lower charge in exchange for helping the prosecution |
| tort | a private or civil wrong |
| battery | shooting, pushing, touching, spitting |
| defamation | false statements about people that injure a reputation |
| libel | printed or written defamation |
| slander | spoken defamation |
| negligence | most common tort for which intent is not required |
| strict liability | liability that exists even though the defendant was not guilty |
| damages | monetary awards given to a plaintiff to punish a defendant |
| evidence | anything that the judge allows to be presented to the jury |
| testimony | statements made by witnesses |
| subpoena | written order by the judge commanding a witness to appear in court to give testimony |
| judgment | the final result of a trial |
| white collar crimes | crimes that generally do not involve force or violence |
| infractions | minor offenses that only result in fines |
| misdemeanor | punishable offenses of less than $1,000 or less than 1 year in prison |
| felony | major crimes punishable by more than one year in prison or more than $1,000 |
