Latin Legal Terms

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.

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.