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Chapter 4
Terms needed to know
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Administrative Law | Enabling statutes enacted to define powers and procedures when an agency is created. |
| Breach of contract | Failure of either party to comply with the terms of a legally valid contract. |
| Case law | Law established through common law and legal precedent. |
| Civil law | Law that involved wrongful acts against persons. |
| Common law | The body of unwritten law developed in England. Primarily from judicial decisions based on custom and tradition. |
| Constitutional law | Law that derives from federal and state constitutions. |
| Contract | A voluntary agreement between two parties in which specific promises are made for a consideration. |
| Criminal law | Law that involves crimes against the state. |
| Defendant | The person or party against whom criminal or civil charges are being brought into a lawsuit. |
| Executive order | A rule or regulation issued by the president of the United States that becomes law without the prior approval of congress. |
| Felony | An offense punishable by death or imprisonment in a state or federal prison for more than one year. |
| Jurisdiction | The power and authority given to a court to hear a case and to make a judgement |
| Legal precedent | Decisions made by judges in the various courts that become rule of law and apply to future cases, even though they were not enacted by legislation |
| Minor | Anyone under the age of majority: 18 years in most states, 21 in some jurisdictions. |
| Misdemeanor | A crime punishable by fine or imprisonment in a facility other than a prison for less than 1 year. |
| Negligence | An unintentional tort alleged when one may have performed or failed to perform an act that a reasonable person would not or would have done in similar circumstances. |
| Plaintiff | The person bringing charges in a law suit. |
| Procedural law | Law that defines the rules used to enforce substantive law. |
| Prosecution | The government a plaintiff in a criminal case. |
| Statute of frauds | State legislation governing written contracts. |
| Statutory law | Law passed by the U.S. Congress or state legislature. |
| Substantive law | The statutory or written law that defines and regulates legal rights and obligations. |
| Tort | A civil wrong committed against a person or property, excluding breach of contract. |
| Tort/feasor | The person guilty of committing a tort. |
| Void | Without legal for or effect, |