Ch. 7 Vocabulary

Civil law: the area of common law regulating the conduct of private parties and their relationships.

• Tort law: the body of civil law associated with harm caused to plaintiffs by the action or inaction of defendants
• Property law: a form of civil law that focuses on the ownership and acquisition of property through conveyances and inheritances.
• Contract law: a form of civil law governing the conduct of business, which deals with the enforceability of private agreements between individuals and between organizations.
• Family law: the set of laws involving marriage, child custody, and other issues arising in personal relationships
  
• Juvenile law: laws regulating the behavior of minors

Plaintiff: person alleging that the defendant has harmed him or her in some way, and who seeks damages for the injury
Specific performance: in civil law, when a court orders someone to do (or not do) something
Preponderance of the evidence: the standard of proof in civil cases
Clear and convincing: a standard of proof in civil law that falls between the usual preponderance of evidence and criminal law's beyond a reasonable doubt
Punitive damages: monetary awards beyond compensation that are designed to punish the defendant and to deter others
Involuntary commitment: the use of legal means to commit someone to a mental institution against his or her will
Res judicata: "thing decided" civil law analogue of the prohibition against double jeopardy. Once a case has been through all possible appeals it is decided forever
Negligence: a failure to act with the appropriate level of care
Ordinary care: the level of care required to avoid committing a negligent act and being civilly liable in tort law.
Contributory negligence: a legal rule now mostly out of favor that states that if an injured party was in anyway partially responsible for his or her injuries he or she was barred from collecting from the tortfeasor
Comparative negligence: a legal doctrine that attempts to apportion the responsibility for negligent conduct among the parties involved
Consent: a defense to some crimes in which a person granting consent is harmed. A claim of consent must demonstrate that it was voluntary, knowing, and intelligent
Immunity: in law, the concept that some people (judges for actions that fall within the purview of judicial duties) or entities (sovereign states) are immune from legal prosecution for their actions
Property: the right of ownership or possession of an item, which may be real, personal, or intangible
Freehold estate: one wherein a person owns a piece of property as distinguished from only a right to use property (as in a rental agreement)
Fee simple estate: an interest in real property that ends when the person dies-at which time the interest reverts to the original owner of the property
Fee simple absolute estate: one in which the property interest does not revert to the original owner
Tenancy in common: exists when multiple parties share equally in the ownership or possession of real property
Easement: a limited right to use another's real property for a specific purpose and time period
Adverse possession: legal doctrine that allows someone to take the real property of another, if they have used it openly and continuously for a period of time
Bailment: the temporary transfer of possession of personal property to another, for a particular purpose
Contract: a legally enforceable document
Uniform Commercial Code: a code of law concerning contracts designed to standardize trade and contract practices among merchants and businesses
Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA): a 1996 federal act defining marriage as a contract that only people of the opposite sexes can enter into
No-fault divorce: divorce granted without assigning fault for the breakup of the marriage.
Annulment: a legal determination that a vaild marriage never existed between the parties
Dual-property: a family law model for dividing property after a divorce; states using this model divide equally all property held jointly that was acquired during the marriage
All-property: a family law model for dividing property after a divorce; states using this model divide equally all property held jointly regardless of when it was acquired
Administrative law: a body of law (also known as regulatory law) created by administrative agencies by the powers granted to them by Congress
Administrative Procedure Act (APA): this 1946 act established the procedural standards federal agencies must follow when adjudicating violations of administrative law
Chevron deference: the principle enunciated by the Supreme Court that courts must defer to agency interpretations of their own laws
Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOA): act passed by Congress in 2002 designed to crack down on white-collar crime
White-Collar Crimes Penalty Enhancement Act: act passed in conjunction with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. It enhanced penalties for white-collar crimes and relaxed evidentiary rules for prosecuting them