A GLOSSARY OF COURTROOM TERMS
Courtroom language is different from the everyday terms most people are familiar with. Many of the legal terms are used in books, movies, and television, but what do they mean? The language of lawyers is often filled with Latin legal terms with which people are unfamiliar. Here are some of the most common courtroom terms, so that when you watch the denture cream lawsuit proceedings on television, or hear Consumer Lawyers speak, you will have a better understand of what is going on:
Accused: A person who is charged with a crime; the defendant
Acquittal: To be found not-guilty of a crime; set free
Admissible: Facts or evidence which are allowed in the court record to help determine guilt or innocence
Appeal: Taking a case to a higher court for review in an effort to overturn a guilty verdict
Arraignment: The first court appearance following arrest; the defendant answers the charges with a “guilty” or “not guilty” plea
Bail: Financial commitment whereby the defendant is released from jail, but ensures he will return to court for trial
Capital offense: A crime punishable by the death penalty
Continuance: The postponement of legal proceedings in a courtroom until a later date
Convict: Find a defendant guilty of the criminal charges against him
Defendant: The person accused of a crime
Dismissal: Closing a court case without trial
Docket: The record of cases on a court’s calendar
Evidence: Facts and materials submitted to the court to determine the truth of the accusation against the defendant
Felony: A crime punished by confinement in prison or death
Guilty: To be found responsible for the crime of which one is accused
Jury: A group of twelve citizens who determine the verdict in a trial after hearing the evidence
Mistrial: Ending a trial before its conclusion due to a procedural error; no verdict is reached and the trial starts from the beginning again
Motion: A request made to the judge for a judgment, such as for a continuance or dismissal
Not guilty: To be found not responsible for the crime of which one is accused, by the judge or a jury, because the evidence does not prove guilt or because of insanity
Objection: A protest by one party in a legal case against an action of the other party on which the judge makes a ruling
Parole: Conditional release of a prisoner who has completed part of his sentence; if he is compliant with restrictions, the remainder of the sentence will be forgiven, if not, he will be returned to prison
Perjury: Giving false testimony under oath
Plaintiff: The person who brings a lawsuit against another person
Plea: Statement made in court by one accused of a crime with regard to guilt or innocence
Preponderance: The evidence which is most credible and convincing
Probation: Being free, rather than jailed, after conviction, subject to supervision by a parole officer
Reasonable doubt: Uncertainty, after hearing the evidence, with regard to the guilt of the accused
Sentence: The punishment given to the accused following a guilty verdict
Verdict: The determination of guilt or innocence by a judge or jury
Witness: One who testifies under oath in a trial about what he saw or heard
As you can see the law has a language of its own and litigants in all courts understand each other. Whether it is a murder trial, poligrip lawsuit, malpractice lawsuit or a civil suit, you too can understand the language of the law.
