General

• Acknowledgement of serviceThis must be filed by a defendant if they are unable to file their defence within a specified period or if they wish to dispute the jurisdiction of a...
• ActAct of Parliament - primary legislation enacted by...
• ActionProceedings issued in the County or High Court. (Now known as...
• Address for ServiceThis is where one party will accept the delivery or service of legal...
• AdjournmentThe temporary suspension of the hearing of a...
• AdjudicationJudgment or decision in a...
• Administrative CourtPart of the High Court which deals with Judicial...
• Admissible(Evidence) which is allowed to be used in a...
• AdversarialThe system of justice used in British courts for trying to get at the truth, based upon argument between two...
• AdvocateSomeone (generally a Barrister or Solicitor) who represents a party in a Court...
• Affidavit A written statement which is confirmed on oath or by...
• AffirmAlternative to swearing a document on oath to promise that it is...
• Allocation questionnaireThis is issued to all parties after a defence has been filed, and is used to decide which track the case will be allocated...
• Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)This is the collective term for the ways in which parties can settle civil disputes without the need for a formal court...
• AppealAn application to a higher court for a review of the decision of a lower...
• AppellantPerson who instigates an...
• ApplicantThe person who is bringing the proceedings to...
• Arbitration The process of using an independent third party, agreed by both sides, to settle disputes without going to...
• Assisted PersonA party to legal proceedings who is receiving legal...
• AwardThe amount of damages assessed by a...
• BarThe body to which all Barristers...
• BarristerLegal professionals who have rights of audience before all...
• Basic ChargesGeneral charges incurred for legal...
• Bench WarrantA warrant issued by a judge for a defendant who is missing which requires them to be arrested and brought before...
• Bill of CostsA detailed statement of a party's...
• Bona FideIn good...
• BriefWritten instructions and history of a case which is sent to a...
• Burden of ProofThe standard of proof which must be shown in order to win a...
• Case NumberA unique reference number which is allocated to each...
• ChambersOffices used by a barrister. Alternatively, a private Court from which the public are excluded in which a Judge may conduct certain...
• Chancery DivisionA section of the High Court, divided between Chancery Chambers and Bankruptcy and Companies...
• Circuit JudgeCircuit judges must be lawyers who have held a 'right of audience' for at least ten years, and must also have served either part-time as a recorder on criminal cases or full-time as district judges on civil cases before they can be...
• CivilMatters concerning private rights as opposed to offences against the...
• ClaimProceedings issued in the County or High Court. Previously known as an...
• Claim FormForm on which a Claim is issued (previously known as a...
• ClaimantPerson issuing a Claim (previously known as the...
• Co-RespondentA person joined as a party to...
• Commissioner of Oaths What is a Commissioner of Oaths?  A Commissioner of Oaths is a person who is authorised to verify legal documents and/or affidavits (a written statement confirmed by oath) for use as evidence in court. All practising solicitors who have been...
• Common LawLaw established by precedent from judicial...
• CompensationSum of money paid in respect of loss, breakage, hardship, inconvenience or personal...
• ConciliationThis is where disputing parties attempt to reach an agreement out of...
• Concurrent WritThis is a duplicate of an original...
• Conduct MoneyMoney paid to a witness in advance of the hearing of a case as compensation for time spent attending...
• Conjoined AppealThis is when appeal claims are joined in...
• Contempt of CourtDisobedience or wilful disregard to the judicial...
• Costs orders An order in court proceedings determining who should pay for each party’s...
• CounselA...
• CounterclaimA claim made by a defendant against a claimant in an...
• County CourtCourt dealing with civil...
• CourtBody with judicial...
• Court Order The recorded decision of a judge, once he has heard and considered the evidence from all parties in the...
• Court RoomPlace where cases are...
• Court of AppealThe second highest court in the land, after the House of...
• Court of Protection The branch of the High Court with jurisdiction over the estates of people mentally incapable of handling their own financial affairs...
• CovenantA formal agreement or a contract which constitutes an obligation to perform an...
• DamagesAn amount of money claimed as compensation for physical or material...
• DeclarationCourt order setting out the rights of a party in the form of a...
• DecreeAn order of the Court in proceedings commenced by...
• DeedA formal document signed and witnessed or...
• Default JudgmentObtained by the claimant as a result of the failure of a defendant to comply with the requirements of a...
• DefendantThe party against whom proceedings are...
• DeponentPerson giving evidence by...
• DepositionA statement of evidence written down and sworn on oath or by...
• Detailed Assessment (of costs)Where costs are dealt with by the drawing of a bill of...
• DeterminationAct of scrutinising a bill of costs in criminal proceedings to see if the work done and amount claimed is...
• Direct ExaminationThe questioning of a witness by the party who called...
• Directions Instructions given by a judge to proceed the case once he has considered the facts presented by the...
• DisbursementPayments made by a solicitor or barrister other than those covered by the Basic...
• Disclaimer A document which denies legal responsibility...
• DisclosureProviding information to both the court and to the other...
• DiscontinuanceNotice given by the Court, on instruction by the claimant, that they no longer wish to proceed with the...
• Discovery of documentsMutual exchange of evidence and all relevant information held by each party relating to the...
• DismissalTo make order or decision that a claim be...
• District JudgeJudges whose duties involve hearing applications made within proceedings and final...
• DomicileThe country in which a person is normally...
• Dominant Land The land which enjoys the benefit of the easement....
• Duty of CareA duty to take reasonable care not to cause physical, psychiatric or economic loss or...
• Engrossment The final version of a...
• Entry of JudgmentDecision of the Court in favour of one or other of the...
• European Court of JusticeThe highest court in the European...
• Ex parteMeaning 'on behalf of only one...
• Expert WitnessPerson employed to give evidence on a subject in which they are qualified or have...
• Fee EarnerA solicitor who is carrying out specific...
• FilingDocuments sent to the court for sealing and...
• GuarantorSomeone who promises to pay money to creditors in case it isn't paid by a...
• High Court A Civil...
• House of LordsThe highest court in the...
• InjunctionAn order by a Court either preventing or requiring someone to carry out a certain...
• InquisitorialThis system of justice aims to get at the truth without the "conflict" part of the Adversarial...
• Inspection of DocumentsArrangements made to allow mutual exchange and copying of documents, following disclosure of...
• InstructionJob given to a...
• Interim HearingA court hearing which does not reach a final...
• Interim OrderAn order during the course of court proceedings which is not the final...
• Interim Payments/DamagesA payment made as a result of a court order or as offered by an opponent before the case is...
• InterlocutoryInterim or pending a full...
• IssueTo initiate legal proceedings in pursuit of a...
• JudgeAn officer appointed to administer the law and who has authority to hear and try cases in a Court of...
• Judgment The final decision of a Court  A Judge’s final decision ...
• Judicial ReviewThe review of decisions of lower courts and public bodies by the High...
• JurisdictionThe area and the matters over which a Court has legal...
• JurorA person who has been summoned by a Court to be a member of the...
• JuryBody of jurors sworn to reach a verdict according to the evidence in a...
• Jury SummonsOrder to attend jury...
• Justice of the Peace A Justice of the Peace (also known as a magistrate) is a lay person appointed to administer judicial business in a Magistrates Court. You can find out more about the work of magistrates on the Magistrates Association website ....
• LawThe system made up of rules established by legislation, custom or...
• Law LordsThe judges who sit in the House of...
• Legal Aid Money paid by the Government for legal expenses of people who are deemed not able to afford it Government help for those who cannot afford legal representation Unfortunately, Birkett Long do not offer this service. ...
• Legal Executive Solicitor’s "unadmitted"...
• LibelA written and published statement or article which causes harm to...
• LitigationLegal...
• LodgingThe process of delivering documents to a...
• Lord ChancellorThe cabinet minister who acts as speaker of the House of Lords and oversees the hearings of the Law...
• Lord Chief JusticeSenior judge of the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division) who also heads the Queens Bench Division of the High Court of...
• Lord Justice of AppealTitle given to certain judges sitting in the Court of...
• Master of the RollsSenior judge of the Civil Division of the Court of...
• MitigationReasons submitted in proceedings on behalf of the defendant in order to minimise the...
• MotionAn application by one party to the High Court for an order in their...
• Notary Public A notary public is someone who is authorised to swear oaths and certify the execution of deeds. Click to find out more about Birkett Long's notary public service....
• Notice of IssueNotice sent by a Court to a claimant which gives notification of the case number allocated to their action and any details of fees...
• Notice of applicationThe document by which proceedings are brought to a...
• OathA verbal promise by a person with religious beliefs to tell the truth in...
• Official SolicitorA solicitor or barrister appointed by the Lord Chancellor and working in the Lord Chancellor's...
• On NoticeWhen the other party is given notice of, and served with, an...
• Open correspondenceCorrespondence between solicitors which is not marked “without...
• Oral ExaminationA method of questioning a person under oath before an officer of the Court to obtain details of their financial...
• OrderA direction by a...
• Part 36 OfferThis is essentially a settlement...
• ParticularsDetails relevant to a...
• PartyAny of the participants in a Court action or...
• PatientA person who is deemed incapable of handling their own affairs by reason of mental...
• Penal NoticeA court warning notifying the recipient that a breach of the order will result in committal to...
• Personal ApplicationApplication made to the Court without legal...
• Personal ServicePersonal delivery of a claim, summons or...
• PlaintiffPerson issuing a Claim (now known as...
• PleadingDocuments setting out a claim or defence of parties involved in civil...
• Power of ArrestAn order attached to some injunctions to allow the police to arrest a person who has broken the terms of an...
• Pre-trial ReviewA preliminary appointment to consider the issues before the Court and fix the timetable for the...
• PrecedentThe decision of a case which established principles of law that act as an authority for future cases of a similar...
• ProcessThe document commencing a claim or subsequent...
• Public TrusteeOfficial who can act as an executor or administrator of an estate of a deceased person, or as a...
• Puisne JudgeRefers to any judge of the High Court other than the heads of each...
• QuantumIn a damages claim the amount to be determined by the...
• Quash To declare no longer valid...
• Queen's Counsel (QC)Senior...
• Queens Bench DivisionDivision of the High...
• ReceiverPerson appointed by the Court of Protection to act on behalf of a...
• RecorderMembers of the legal profession who are appointed to act in a judicial capacity on a part time...
• RedeterminationAn application by a solicitor or barrister to reconsider amounts assessed by...
• RemedyPayments or other actions ordered by a court in order to settle a...
• Respondent The party against whom proceedings are brought...