A fortiori -
With even stronger reason; More conclusively; All the more so
A posteriori -
From what comes after (From effect to cause)
A priori -
From what comes before (Reasoning from cause to effect)
Ab abusu ad usum non valet consequentia -
Consequences of abuse do not aply to general use
Ab extra -
From without or from outside
Ab initio (ab init) -
From the beginning
Ab intra -
From within
Ab origine -
From the source, from the first
Absense haeres non erit -
An absent person will not be an heir
Accedas ad curiam -
You may approach the court
Accessorius sequitur -
One who is an accessory to the crime cannot be guilty of a more serious crime than the principal offender
Actio ex delicto -
Cause of action (Reason for lawsuit)
Actus reus -
Guilty or Wrongful act
Ad hoc -
For a particular purpose (Improvised, impromptu, made up in an instant)
Ad initio -
From the start
Ad sectam (ads) -
At the suit of
Ad valorem (Ad val.) -
According to the value
Ademption -
Failure of a gift
Aequitas sequitur legem -
Equity follows the law
Alibi -
Elsewhere
Alimenta -
Means of support (Food, clothing, shelter)
Aliunde -
From another source, from elsewhere
Altercatio -
Forensic argumentation; cross-examination
Ambigendi locus -
Room for doubt
Amicus curiae -
Friend of the court (Impartial spokesperson)
Animus furandi -
The intention to steal
Animus testandi -
The intention to make a will
Au fait -
Acquainted with the facts; expert; proficient
Audi alteram partem -
Hear the other side (A principle of fairness)
Autre vie -
The life of another
Autrefois acquit -
Already acquitted
Autrefois convict -
Already convicted
Bancus Communium Placitorum -
Court of Common Pleas
Bona fiscalia -
Public property
Bona mobilia -
Moveable property
Bona vacantia -
Vacant goods. Goods without an apparent owner
Boni mores -
Good morals
Cadit quaestio -
The question falls (The issue collapses)
Capias ad audiendum -
Writ ordering appearance in court
Capias ad respondendum -
Writ ordering the arrest of a person
Capias ad satisfaciendum -
Writ ordering satisfaction of an order
Casus belli -
Act justifying war (Grounds for a dispute)
Causa causans -
Cause that causes all things; Immediate cause
Causa causata -
Cause resulting from a previous cause
Caveat emptor -
Let the buyer beware (He buys at his own risk)
Caveat venditor -
Let the seller beware
Certiorari -
To be informed by an Appellate review court
Ceteris paribus -
Other things being equal (All else being equal)
Charta pardonationis se defendendo -
The form of a pardon for killing another man in self-defence
Charta pardonationis utlagariae -
The form of a pardon of a man who is outlawed
Chartae libertatum -
Charters of liberties
Communi consensu -
By common consent
Compos mentis -
Of sound mind (Sometimes used humorously)
Consensu omnium -
By the agreement of all
Consensu -
Unanimously or, by general consent
Consensus ad idem -
Agreement as to the same things
Consensus omnium -
Agreement of all members
Contra bonos mores -
Contrary to good morals
Contra ius commune -
Against common law
Contra ius gentium -
Against the law of nations
Contra legem -
Against the law
Contra mores -
Contrary to morals
Coram non iudice -
Before a judge without proper jurisdiction
Corpus delicti -
The body of a crime (The substance or fundamental facts of a crime)
Corpus juris -
The body of the law (Meaning a compendium of all laws)
Cui bono? -
To whom is it good? (Who benefits from this?) (A maxim sometimes used in the detection of crime) (Cicero)
Curia advisari vult -
The court wishes to be advised
Custos morum -
Guardian of morals; A censor
Custos rotularum -
Guardian of the rolls; Justice of the peace
De bonis asportatis -
Of the goods carried away
De die in diem -
From day to day; continuously
De facto -
Something that is automatically accepted
De futuro -
In the future; Regarding the future
De integro -
Repeat again from the start
De iure -
By law. According to law. From the law
De jure -
Rightful, by right
De lunatico inquiriendo -
A writ to inquire into the insanity of a person
De minimis non curat lex -
The law does not concern itself with trifles
De minimis -
Of minimum importance; Trifling
De novo -
Anew, fresh, renewed, to begin again
Delictum -
Offense
Die ad diem -
From day to day
Dies juridicus -
A day on which the court is in session
Dies non juridicus -
A day on which the court is not in session
Doli incapax -
Incapable of crime
Dubitante -
Doubting the correctness of the decision
Duces tecum -
You shall bring it with you (Subpoena)
Ei incumbit probatio qui dicit non qui negat -
The proof lies upon the one who affirms, not the one who denies. (Burden of proof)
Eiusdem generis -
Of the same kind
Ergo post hoc -
In logic, the fallacy of thinking that a happening which follows another must be its result
Et alia; et alii (et al.) -
And other things; and other people
Et cetera (etcetera) (etc.) -
And the rest, and so forth
Et sequentia (et seq.) -
And the following
Et uxor (et ux.) -
And wife
Ex cathedra -
From the chair, with authority (Without argumentation)
Ex concessis -
In view of what has already been accepted
Ex curia -
From the court
Ex delicto -
Matter arising out of the crime
Ex dolo malo non oritur actio -
No right of action can have its origin in fraud
Ex dolo malo -
From fraud; From harmful deceit
Ex facie -
From the face of
Ex facto jus oritur -
The law arises out of the fact
Ex facto -
From the fact or act
Ex gratia -
Out of kindness, voluntary (In law, implying absence of legal right)
Ex iniuria ius non oritur -
Right can not grow out of injustice
Ex lege -
Arising from the law
Ex mero motu -
Of his own free will
Ex officio -
By virtue of his office
Ex parte -
Proceeding brought by one person in the absence of another
Ex post facto -
After the fact, or retrospectively
Ex relatione (ex rel.) -
Upon being related; Upon information
Exceptis excipiendis -
Excepting those (factors) which should be excepted
Felo de se -
Evildoer upon himself (Suicide)
Fiat justitia, ruat caelum -
Let justice be done, though the heavens fall
Fieri facias -
Writ authorizing execution of a judgment
Fons et origo -
The source and origin
Force majeure -
Act of God
Forum rei -
The court of the country in which the subject of an action is situated
Functus officio -
Having discharged his duty and flies ceased to have any authority over a matter
Habeas corpus -
You must have the body (A legal writ to end unlawful restraint by bringing a prisoner into court)
Id est (i.e.) -
That is to say
In absentia -
In one's absence
In actu -
In act; In the very act; In reality
In banco -
On the bench
In camera -
In secret or private session; Not in public
In consimili casu -
In a like case
In curia -
In court
In delicto -
At fault
In esse -
In existence
In extenso -
At full length
In extremis -
At the point of death
In flagrante delicto -
In the very act of committing an offence (Red-handed)
In forma domestico -
In a domestic court
In forma pauperis -
In the form of a poor person; in a humble or abject manner
In foro -
In forum; In court
In futoro -
In the future
In haec verba -
In these words
In limine -
On the threshold, at the very outset
In loco (in loc.) -
In the place
In loco citato (in loc. cit., loc. cit.) -
In the place cited
In loco parentis -
In the place of a parent
In omnibus -
In every respect
In personam -
Directed towards a particular person
In pleno -
In full
In Propria Persona -
For one's self; Acting on one's own behalf
In re -
In the matter of, refering to
In rem -
Against or about a thing (Property)
In situ -
In position, in its original place
In terrorem clause -
In fear
In terrorem -
As a warning or deterrent
In totidem verbis -
In so many words
Iniuvra -
Injury to personal dignity
Inter alia -
Amongst other things
Inter alios -
Amongst other people
Inter se -
Between or among themselves
Inter vivos -
Between living persons
Intra vires -
Within the authority, lit., the strengths or powers
Ipse dixit -
He himself said it (Cicero)
Ipsissima verba -
The very words themselves (Strictly word for word)
Ipsissimis verbis -
In the exact or identical words
Ipso facto -
By that very fact
Ipso iure -
By operation of the law
Jus naturale -
Natural justice
Lese majeste -
High treason
Lex fori -
The law of the court in which an action is tried
Lex lata -
The law as it exists
Lex loci -
The law of the place
Lex non scripta -
The unwritten (common) law
Lex scripta -
The written law
Lex talionis -
The law of retaliation (Retributive justice, an eye for an eye)
Lis pendens -
An action pending
Locum tenens -
A deputy
Locus in quo -
The place in which something happens
Locus standi -
Place of standing; the right to be heard in a court
Mala fide -
In bad faith (Something which is done fraudulently)
Malum in se -
Wrong in itself (A crime that is inherently wrong)
Mens rea -
The wrongful intention or guilty mind
Motu proprio -
Of one's own initiative
Mutatis mutandis -
With those things changed which needed to be changed (With the appropriate changes)
Ne bis in idem -
Not twice the same (Canones apostulorum; A person cannot be sentenced twice for the same crime)
Nemo dat quod non habet -
One may not transfer what one does not have
Nisi prius -
Unless first, unless previously
Nolle prosequi -
To be unwilling to prosecute
Nolo contendere -
I do not wish to contend (No contest)
Non compos mentis -
Not in possession of one's senses
Non constat -
It is not certain
Non est factum -
It is not his deed
Non sequitur (non seq.) -
It does not follow (A statement that is the result of faulty logic)
Nunc pro tunc -
Now for then (Has retroactive effect, effective from an earlier date)
Obiter dictum (pl. dicta) -
Something said in passing; Parenthetical remark
Onus probandi -
The burden of proof.
Opere citato (op. cit.) -
In the work (cited) just quoted
Par delictum -
Equal fault
Pari passu -
With equal step, moving together, simultaneously
Passim (adv.) -
Here and there; indiscriminately
Pendente lite -
While a suit is pending
Per contra -
On the contrary
Per curiam -
Through the senate; By the court
Per incuriam -
Through want of care
Per minas -
By means of menaces or threats
Per quod -
By reason of which
Persona non grata -
An unacceptable person
Prima facie -
On the face of it; At first sight (An obvious case that requires no further proof)
Prima impressionis -
On first impression
Pro bono (publico) -
For the (public) good (Said of a lawyer's work that is not charged for)
Pro forma -
For form; As a matter of form; Performed in a set manner
Pro hac vice -
For this occasion only
Pro rata -
For the rate; Proportionately
Pro tanto -
For so much (Partially fulfilled)
Pro tempore (pro tem.) -
For the time (For the time being)
Publici juris -
Of public right
Quaeitur -
The question is raised
Quaere -
Consider whether it is correct
Quantum meruit -
As much as he/she deserved
Quantum -
How much; as much as
Qui tam -
Who as well (Whistle blower)
Quid pro quo -
Something for something (A favor for a favor)
Ratio decidendi -
Reasoning for the decision
Re -
In the matter of
Rebus sic stantibus -
With matters standing thus
Reductio ad absurdum -
Reduction to the absurd (Proving the truth of a proposition by proving the falsity of all its alternatives)
Res furtivae -
Stolen goods
Res gestae -
Things done
Res ipsa loquitur -
The thing speaks for itself
Res judicata -
Judged thing. (Matter which has been decided by a court)
Res nullius -
Nobody's thing (Goods without an owner)
Res perit domino -
The risk of loss is on the owner
Res sic stantibus -
Things remain the same
Res -
Matter, affair, thing, circumstance
Sciens -
Knowingly
Scienter -
Having knowledge
Secus -
The legal position is different, it is otherwise
Semble -
It appears, seemingly
Sine qua non -
Without which it could not be; an indispensable action or condition
Stare decisis -
To stand by things decided (Uphold previous rulings, recognize precedence)
Status quo -
The current state of being
Stet -
Let it stand
Sub judice (alt. iudice) -
Under a judge; Before a court; Under consideration
Sub modo -
Within limits
Sub nomine -
Under the name of
Sub Poena (alt. subpoena) -
Under penalty of Law (A writ issued by a court requiring one's attendance at that court)
Sub poena duces tecum -
Bring with you under penalty (Legal writ requiring appearance with documents)
Sub rosa -
Under the rose (Secretly or in confidence)
Sub secreto -
In secret
Sub silentio -
In silence
Suggestio falsi -
The suggestion of something which is untrue
Sui generis -
Of its own kind (In a class of its own)
Sui iuris (sui juris) -
Of one's own right
Suppressio veri -
The suppression of the truth
Talis qualis -
Just as such; Such as it is; As such
Terminus a quo -
The end from which; starting point
Terminus ad quem -
Limit until which; finish
Tertium quid -
A third something
Tour de force -
A feat of strength; a skillful accomplishment
Uberrima fides -
Good faith; Most abundant faith
Uberrimae fidei -
Of the utmost good faith
Ubi jus ibi remedium -
Where (there is) a right, there (is) a remedy
Ubi supra -
Where (cited) above
Ultra vires -
Beyond powers; Without authority
Uno flatu -
At the same moment; With one breath
Verbatim -
Word by word, exactly
Vexata quaestio -
A disputed question
Vi et armis -
By force and arms
Via media -
A middle way or course
Vice versa -
With the order or meaning reversed
Vis compulsiva -
Compulsive force
Vis maior -
Irresistible force; act of God
Volens -
Willing
Volenti non fit iniuria -
A person who consents, does not suffer injustice
Volte face -
A change of front; an about-turn
