civil procedure
cross-examination
Definition from Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary
At trial, the opportunity to question any witness who testifies on behalf of any other party to the lawsuit (in civil cases) or for the prosecution or other codefendants (in criminal cases). The...
cumis counsel
The term cumis counsel is taken from the case San Diego Federal Credit Union v. Cumis Ins. Society. Cumis counsel refers to an independent attorney hired by an insurance company to represent the defendant in cases with a strong conflict of...
damages
In civil cases, damages are the remedy that a party requests the court award in order to try to make the injured party whole. Typically damage awards are in the form of monetary compensation to the harmed party. Damages are imposed if the...
Daubert Standard
The “Daubert Standard” provides a systematic framework for a trial court judge to assess the reliability and relevance of expert witness testimony before it is presented to a jury. Established in the 1993 U.S. Supreme Court case Daubert v....
de novo
De novo is a Latin term that means "anew," "from the beginning," or "afresh." When a court hears a case “de novo,” it is deciding the issues without reference to any legal conclusion or assumption made by the previous court to hear the case....
dead man's statute
A dead man's statute states that in a civil action, a party with an interest in the litigation may not testify against a dead party about communications with the dead party. In Larkin v. Metz, 398 Pa.Super. 235, the court noted that the “...
deadlocked jury
A deadlocked jury is a jury that, despite honest attempts, is unable to reach a verdict by the required voting margin, resulting in a mistrial. Deadlocked jury is also known as a hung jury. Often, a deadlocked jury will lead to a retrial of...
deceit
Deceit is most commonly seen as the key element of the tort of fraud. Though primarily a common law concept, deceit is sometimes defined by states in either criminal or civil statutes. For example:
In New Jersey, "The term 'deceive'...deception
Deception is the act of deliberately causing somebody to accept something as true that is not true. It is an action that hides the truth.
Ohio defines deception as “knowingly deceiving another or causing another to be...
decide
To decide is to determine an issue or issues; to reach a decision on a legal issue or issues.
[Last updated in July of 2021 by the Wex Definitions Team]