Law is a very complicated subject, and legal terms are not easy to learn in any language, especially when you’re just starting out in English.
In this English vocabulary worksheet you will find:
- The definition of law;
- The most common and most used vocabulary words related to law.
Let’s begin!
Whether you wish to take the IELTS, TOEIC, TOEFL, CAE, FCE, BRIDGE, BULATS (Linguaskill) or even the BRIGHT ENGLISH, you need to enhance your English vocabulary in order to prepare for your test and boost your overall English level! We have have made a long list of vocabulary worksheets:
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What is The Right Definition of Law?
Law is the main official embodiment of objective right. In a broad sense, law describes any general and non-personal rule, derived from a collective will and endowed with binding power.
Who Needs to Learn the Legal Terms in English?
People working closely with the law, such as judges, lawyers, administrators… should be well versed in legal terms, or at least have the facility to consult them.
Other than that, anyone can learn some basic legal terms for their own general culture and wealth.
Law Vocabulary: Glossary of Most Important Legal Terms
| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| Letter A | |
| Abandonment | The waiving of a right or procedure |
| Aborning | It is the operation whereby, the owners of two adjoining plots of land have agreed on the dividing line between their properties, they place boundary marks, such as stones, stakes, or concrete blocks |
| Abrogate | It’s the cancellation from a given date of the application of a legislative or regulatory text |
| Abstention | The position one takes when refusing to be involved in a legal act or situation in which one is required, or when one is prevented from doing so by law, by regulation, or by contract. |
| Abuse | The act of being at fault by overstepping the limits of the exercise of a right conferred on us |
| Accedit | In the context of judicial evaluation procedures, an inter partes encounter during which the expert briefs the parties on the progression of the case, while the parties have the option to submit arguments |
| Adjournment | To postpone the case, either to a fixed date or without fixing one, according to the circumstances |
| Appeal | A means of obtaining recourse to the courts, to review a case. |
| Article | The smallest part of a contract, law or administrative regulation that allows a clear interpretation of its meaning |
| Letter B | |
| Word | Definition |
| Bar | A collective term for lawyers who practise before a court of law |
| Barrister | Chairperson and representative of the Bar before a court |
| Boundaries | The separation lines between two or more parcels of land |
| Branch (estates) | The legal department in charge of estate matters |
| Letter C | |
| Cabinet | It’s the office in which the President and the judges work. Magistrates sit in it alone or occasionally share with other magistrates within the courthouse. The word is used for the offices of judges and prosecutors. To a lesser extent, it may refer to a partnership between two or more lawyers |
| Capital (company law) | The total amount of resources and money provided by the members in exchange for company shares |
| Cassation | When, after an appeal, a court sets aside the judgment or decision appealed against, the sentence for the defect that the court has decided is called ‘cassation’ |
| Claim | A legal action to recover a possession |
| Clause | A text referring to a legal act which establishes the rights and duties of the parties concerned by that act |
| Conciliation | Procedure for the amicable settlement of disputes, to which the adverse parties are under obligation to submit prior to any legal action |
| Conclusions | A document drawn up by the lawyer and submitted to the court, containing the arguments and claims, which enables the judge to acknowledge the case before trying it |
| Constitution | A law that prevails over any other, it’s a set of legal texts that establishes the different institutions constituting the State and structures their relation |
| Counterclaim | It examines the substantive elements of the case and checks that there were no legal errors. It can either confirm the decision made by the first judges or overturn it in whole or in part |
| Letter D | |
| Debts | Sum of money or goods which a debtor must return to his or her creditor |
| Dismissal | A decision of the judge to adjourn or transfer a case to another court |
| Debarment | The presiding magistrate may strike the case from the list if the adverse parties have failed to respect the procedures. |
| Decree | Decrees are regulatory legal texts, issued by the executive authority |
| De facto, de jure | These are Latin expressions which mean ‘it’s a fact’ or on the contrary, ‘a right’ |
| Letter E | |
| Endorsement | A current holder, named endorser, writes notes on the back of the promissory note, which allows the drawee to make payment to another beneficiary called endorsee |
| Enforcement (Ways of -) | The reasons of fact or law on which a judge must base his or her decision and those on which the parties base their claims or defence |
| Exequatur | A procedure by which the beneficiary of a foreign court order intends to have it executed on the national territory |
| Letter F | |
| Fideicommis | It refers to a will provision by which the testator transmits an asset, the whole or part of his or her patrimony, to an ostensible beneficiary, who ’ll transmit the asset (ies) to a third person specifically designated in the will |
| Fiducie | A contract by which the donor transfers all or part of his or her property to another person, the trustee, instructing him or her to act in favour of one or more beneficiaries |
| Forclusion | It’s the civil sanction which, on the expiry of the time limit granted in court, ends the recognition of a person’s right of action |
| Letter G | |
| Word | Definition |
| Gratification | It’s a sum of money paid as a bonus to the employee by the employer, to reward work done or to celebrate family events |
| Gré à gré | Transfer of a right or property by the freely expressed will of the parties |
| Guarantee | It’s the obligation imposed on the party transferring ownership or use of property or a claim to provide protection so that a third party won’t be able to challenge the transaction |
| Letter H | |
| Heir | Any person who has an inheritance right |
| Letter I | |
| Illicit | Synonym of illegal, something against the law |
| In extenso | A term of Latin origin meaning ‘in its entirety’, as opposed to ‘by excerpt’ |
| Letter J | |
| Jurisdiction | A court acting as a public service of the State with the function of judging disputes that are referred to it |
| Jurisprudence | The whole range of decisions and judgements that the Courts and Tribunals have rendered for the settlement of a given legal matter. |
| Letter L | |
| Legitimacy | The recourse on a higher principle that in a society and at a given time is thought to be fair |
| Liquidation | The fact of shutting down a stock or business for lack of cash resources or funds |
| Letter M | |
| Magistrate | Any person in a position of authority. In common law countries, particularly in Great Britain, magistrates are nominated for life from amongst the most prominent ranks of the bar |
| Letter N | |
| Ne varietur | Latin word meaning ‘let nothing be changed’, used in the legal field to indicate the definitive, immutable character of a document after the events mentioned previously |
| Notary | It’s a lawyer with public authority who drafts agreements in legal form on behalf of his clients |
| Letter O | |
| Opine | ‘to consent to’, ‘to be of the opinion that’. It is found in judgments or decisions when the writer wants to emphasise a magistrate’s approval of the other participants’ opinions. |
| Letter P | |
| Prejudice | A harm that is intentionally or unintentionally caused to another individual |
| Letter Q | |
| Quorum | The minimum number of present or delegated votes fixed by the law or by the statutes, for a company’s shareholders or unit holders to be allowed to debate. |
| Letter R | |
| Rebuttal | A rhetorical method by which a party to a lawsuit intends to justify its opponent’s argument as containing false allegations |
| Retract | It’s the decision taken by a person, an authority or a magistrate to withdraw a decision already taken |
| Letter S | |
| Seal | An imprint made on a document, usually by means of a greasy ink-coated stamp or other marking process to stamp an identifying badge, sign, shield, or text |
| Split | It’s an operation intended to separate the branches activity of a firm into several companies |
| Letter T | |
| Tacitus | From the conclusion of legal acts or the performance of material acts which establish their authors’ will |
| Third party | Non-parties or non-represented individuals in a convention |
| Letter U | |
| Usufruct | The right to use an asset and earn income from it, without owning it |
| Letter V | |
| Vacant | It means in employment law or administrative that a job is not filled |
| Letter W | |
| Warrant | is a natural or legal individual, who has subscribed to a legal engagement that binds him or her to act as a guarantee |
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