E.G. The Appellate Committee of the House of Lords was independent, effective, inexpensive and was regarded as one of the finest courts in the world.

3. armed robbery (n.) - robbery committed while the person accused is armed with a dangerous weapon.

e.g. They charge him with armed robbery.

4. arson (n.)- the act of intentionally or recklessly setting fire to another's property or to one's own property for some improper reason.

e.g. The police arrested him for arson.

5. binding (adj.) –(of an agreement or promise) involving an obligation that cannot be broken.

e.g. Business agreements are intended to be legally binding.

6. case law (n.) /precedent (n.)/judge-made law (adj.+n.) -the law established by the outcome of former cases.

e.g. Moreover, it was an area where practice, case law and specialized studies were relatively sparse.

7. civil court (adj.+n.) -a court dealing with noncriminal cases.

e.g. Civil courts decide disputes involving tort ,contract disputes, property disputes, administrative law, commercial law, and any other matters.

8. county court(n.) - a local court exercising limited jurisdiction in civil matters.

e.g. All County Courts can deal with contract and tort (civil wrong) cases and recovery of land actions.

9. court of first instance (n.) - a court in which legal proceedings are begun or first heard.

e.g. The Crown Court is a criminal court of both original and appellate jurisdiction which in addition handles a limited amount of civil business both at first instance and on appeal.

10. criminal case (adj.+n.) - an action, suit, or cause instituted to punish an infraction of the criminal laws.

e.g. The nature of a criminal case involves a government entity accusing a person (or sometimes a group of people or a business entity) with violating a law.

11. criminal court(adj.+n.) - a court which hears criminal rather than civil cases.

e.g. Universally known as the Old Bailey, this is probably the most famous criminal court in the world, and has been London's principal criminal court for centuries.

12. cross-examination (n.) - the questioning of a witness about the evidence he or she has given.

e.g. Cross-examination promotes the reliability of the trial by testing the witness’ evidence.

13. defendant(n.) - a person against whom an action or claim is brought in a court of law.

e.g. One thing no one wants to be is a defendant: that means someone sued you, which could cost you a lot of money.

14. delegated legislation (adj.+ n.) - law made by an executive authority.

e.g. Delegated legislation can be used for a wide variety of purposes.

15. evidence(n.) - the available body of facts or information indicating whether a belief or proposition is true or valid.

e.g. After you have given your evidence and are excused by the court, you are free to leave.

16. fraud(n.) - the intentional use of deceit, a trick or some dishonest means to deprive another of his/her/its money, property or a legal right.

e.g. There are many different types of fraud, for example, bankruptcy fraud, credit card fraud, and healthcare fraud.

17. judgment(n.) - a decision by a court or other tribunal that resolves a controversy and determines the rights and obligations of the parties.

e.g. A judgment is the final part of a court case.

18. judicial (adj.)- relating to the courts or belonging to the office of a judge.

e.g. He might bring judicial proceedings against you.

19. jurisdiction (n.) - the geographic area over which authority extends; legal authority; the authority to hear and determine causes of action.

e.g. Jurisdiction can also be used to define the proper court in which to bring a particular case.

20. law of contract (n.) - body of law that governs oral and written agreements and subjects, such as agency relationships, commercial paper, employment, and business organizations.

e.g. Contract law varies greatly from one jurisdiction to another.

21. law of property(n.) -the area of law that governs the various forms of ownership and tenancy in real property and in personal property, within the common law legal system.

e.g. In its essence, property law has to provide answers to two very difficult questions: who is entitled to use property, and how are they entitled to use it?

22. law of torts (n.) - a body of rights, obligations, and remedies applied by courts in civil proceedings to provide relief for persons who have suffered harm from the wrongful acts of others.

e.g. The law of torts is derived from a combination of common-law principles and legislative enactments.

23. lawsuit (n.) - claim or dispute brought to a court of law for adjudication.

e.g. The lawsuit begins with the plaintiff filing a complaint with the court.

24. legal environment of business (adj.+n.) - a component of the marketing environment that consists of laws & their interpretations, requiring firms to operate under competitive conditions and set to protect consumer rights.

e.g. The basic legal environment of business is governed by state, country and international laws.

25. magistrates' court(n.) - a court of summary jurisdiction held before two or more justices of the peace or a District judge to deal with minor crimes, certain civil actions, and preliminary hearings.

e.g. Magistrates’ Courts can also give a combination of punishments, for example, a fine and unpaid work in the community.

26. minor offence (adj.+n.) - a socially harmful act not provided for by criminal law or without all the characteristics indicated in criminal law.

e.g. Unlike a crime, a minor offense usually does not have the element of social danger.

27. murder (n.) - unlawful premeditated killing of one human being by another.

e.g. When someone willfully commits murder and premeditation is involved, he or she may be charged with first degree murder.

28. private law (adj.+n.) - a branch of the law that deals with the relations between individuals or institutions rather than relations between these and the state.

e.g. Private law deals with relations between individuals (meaning individual people or organisations).

29. procedural law (adj.+n.) - law that prescribes the procedures and methods for enforcing rights and duties and for obtaining redress (e.g., in a suit).

e.g. Procedural law is a set of established forms for conducting a trial and regulating the events that precede and follow it.

30. public law (adj.+n.) – the law of relationships between individuals and the government.

e.g. Constitutional law, administrative law, and criminal law are some of the major subdivisions of public law.

31. rape (n.) - the unlawful compelling of a person through physical force or duress to have sexual intercourse.

e.g. Punishment for rape in most countries today is imprisonment, but until the late twentieth century, some states of the U.S could apply the death penalty in cases of aggravated rape.

32. substantive law(adj.+n.) - the part of the law that creates, defines, and regulates rights, including, for example, the law of contracts, wills, and real property; the essential substance of rights under law.

e.g. Substantive law is a statutory law that deals with the legal relationship between people or the people and the state.

33. Supreme Court (adj.+n.) - the final court of appeal in the UK for civil cases, and for criminal cases from England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It hears cases of the greatest public or constitutional importance affecting the whole population.

e.g. The Supreme Court has recently replaced the House of Lords as the highest court in the United Kingdom.

34. to enforce (v.) – to compel observance of or compliance with (a law, rule, or obligation), cause (something) to happen by necessity or force.

e.g. When the statute commands a certain action or result, the judge’s role is to enforce that command.

35. to testify (v.) - to make a declaration of truth or fact under oath; submit testimony: witnesses testifying before a grand jury.

e.g. He testified in court that he saw the defendant.

36. to try(v.) - to litigate a legal controversy; to argue a lawsuit in court as an attorney; to sit in the role of a judge or jury to investigate and decide upon questions of law and fact presented in such an action.

e.g. A court where a case was originally tried has original jurisdiction, which means it can be tried in that court first.

37. treaty(n.) - a binding agreement under international law, entered by parties who are subject to international law, mainly states and international organizations.

e.g. A multilateral treaty has several parties, and establishes rights and obligations between each party and every other party.

38. trial(n.) - a judicial examination and determination of facts and legal issues arising between parties to a civil or criminal action.

e.g. The two main types of trials are civil trials and criminal trials.

39. tribunal (n.) - an officer or body with the authority to pronounce judgment on a matter based upon the evidence, a court or other judicial body.

e.g.Industrial Tribunals are independent judicial bodies that hear and determine claims to do with employment matters.

40. valid(adj.) - binding; possessing legal force or strength; legally sufficient.

e.g. For the contract to be valid, this agreement must include some form of consideration, meaning that the contracting parties must receive something of value from the contract.

UNIT 2