reporter of decisions. The person responsible for publishing a court’s opinions. • The position began historically — in the years before systematic reporting of decisions was introduced — when lawyers attended the sessions of particular courts, were accredited to them by the judges, and reported the decisions of that court. Today, the reporter of decisions […]
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fetal alcohol syndrome. A variety of birth defects caused by the mother’s alcohol consumption during pregnancy. • The birth defects include facial abnormalities, mental retardation, and growth deficiencies. — Abbr. FAS.
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force majeure (fors ma-zh[schwa]r). [Law French “a superior force”] An event or effect that can be neither anticipated nor controlled. • The term includes both acts of nature (e.g., floods and hurricanes) and acts of people (e.g., riots, strikes, and wars). — Also termed force majesture; vis major; superior force. Cf. ACT OF GOD; VIS
illegal entry. 1. Criminal law. The unlawful act of going into a building with the intent to commit a crime. • In some jurisdictions, illegal entry is a lesser included offense of burglary. [Cases: Burglary 9. C.J.S. Burglary §§ 11–12, 16, 21–22.] 2. Immigration. The unauthorized entrance of an alien into the United States by
dangerous-proximity test. Criminal law. A common-law test for the crime of attempt, focusing on whether the defendant is dangerously close to completing the offense. • Factors include the gravity of the potential crime, the apprehension of the victim, and the uncertainty of the crime’s occurrence. See ATTEMPT(2). [Cases: Criminal Law 44. C.J.S. Criminal Law §§
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A contract that includes two or more promises each of which can be enforced separately, so that failure to perform one of the promises does not necessarily put the promisor in breach of the entire contract. — Also termed divisible contract; several contract. See SEVERABILITY CLAUSE. Cf. joint contract. [Cases: Contracts 137, 171. C.J.S. Contracts
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blood. A relationship between persons arising by descent from a common ancestor. See RELATIVE. entire blood. See full blood. full blood. The relationship existing between persons having the same two parents; unmixed ancestry. — Also termed whole blood; entire blood. half blood. The relationship existing between persons having the same father or mother, but not
civil right. (usu. pl.) 1. The individual rights of personal liberty guaranteed by the Bill of Rights and by the 13th, 14th, 15th, and 19th Amendments, as well as by legislation such as the Voting Rights Act. • Civil rights include esp. the right to vote, the right of due process, and the right of
accomplice ([schwa]-kom-plis). 1. A person who is in any way involved with another in the commission of a crime, whether as a principal in the first or second degree or as an accessory. • Although the definition includes an accessory before the fact, not all authorities treat this term as including an accessory after the
acquittal, n. 1. The legal certification, usu. by jury verdict, that an accused person is not guilty of the charged offense. acquittal in fact. An acquittal by a jury verdict of not guilty. acquittal in law. An acquittal by operation of law, as of someone who has been charged merely as an accessory after the