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Most Popular Legal Definitions

kangaroo Court

A judicial proceeding or trial which has a predetermined outcome or where basic legal rights of a party are jumped over.

to wit

'That is to say.'

sale

Transfer of something (and title to it) in return for money.

nunc pro tunc

Latin, deemed retroactive.

carnal knowledge

 from Latin carnalis for "fleshly;" carnal knowledge, knowledge of sexual intercourse between a male and female in which there is at least some penetration, no matter how slight, is legally significant in that it is a necessary legal characteristic or element of rape, molestation, and statutory rape

innocent passage

A term of international maritime law referring to a ship's right to enter and pass through a coastal state's territorial water as long as it is not prejudicial to the peace and order of the coastal state.

basis

the original cost of an asset to be used to determine the amount of capital gain tax upon its sale; an "adjusted basis" includes improvements, expenses, and damages between the time the original basis (price) is established and transfer of the asset; "stepped up basis" means that the original basis of an asset will be stepped up to current value at the time of the death of the owner, and thus keep down capital gain taxes if the beneficiary of the dead person sells the asset

ecclesiastical law

Synonymous to canon law

suppression of evidence

 1) A judge's determination not to allow evidence to be admitted in a criminal trial because it was illegal obtained. 2) the improper hiding of evidence by a prosecutor who is constitutionally required to reveal to the defense all evidence.

pedophile

A person afflicted with pedophilia, a sexual perversion in which children are preferred as sexual partners.