Legal Dictionary of Pakistan
Quick lookup for English, Urdu, and Latin legal terms used in Pakistani jurisprudence.
Bankruptcy case
see bankruptcy (1).
Calvin's case
The decision establishing that persons born in Scotland after the 1603 accession of James I to the English throne were deemed natural-born subjects of the King of England and could inherit English land. Calvin v. Smith, 7 Eng. Rep. 1, 2 S.T. 559 (1608).
Case
1. A proceeding, action, suit, or controversy at law or in equity <the parties settled the case>.
Case at bar.
See CASE.
Casebook
A compilation of extracts from instructive cases on a particular subject, usu. with commentary and questions about the cases, designed as a teaching aid. Cf HORNBOOK.
Caselaw
See CASELAW.
Court for Consideration of Crown Cases Reserved
Hist. A court established in 1848 to review questions of law arising in criminal cases. 9 Trial judges posed the postverdict questions of law to the Court, which decided whether error had been committed. The Court was abolished in 1907, and its jurisdiction was transferred to the Court of Criminal Appeal. -Also termed Court for Crown Cases Reserved . "It was an old practice for the judge, in case of a conviction, if he felt a doubt as to the law, to respite judgment or sentence, and discuss the matter informally with the other judges. If they thought that the prisoner had been improperly convicted, he was pardoned. Statutory authority was given to this practice in 1848 by the establishment of the court for Crown Cases Reserved. All the judges were members of this court; and five, of whom the Lord Chief Justice must be one, formed a quorum." 1 William Holdsworth, A History of English Law 217 (7th ed. 1956).
Court of Appeals in Cases of Capture
Hist. A court responsible for reviewing state-court decisions concerning British ships captured by American privateers during the War of Independence. ( The Court was established by Congress under the Articles of Confederation and served as the chief U.S. court from 1780 to 1787. It was the first federal court in the United States.
Crown case
English law. A criminal action.
Granger Cases
Six U.S. Supreme Court decisions that affirmed the government's right to regulate fees charged by common carriers, warehouses, and grain elevators. a The cases, decided in 1876, arose out of grangers' (i.e., farmers') frustration with the inflated prices they were paying to store and transport their agricultural products. Several state legislatures passed statutes regulating the rates. The affected businesses sued to have the statutes overturned on grounds that they violated the Commerce Clause and the Due Process Clause of the 14th Amendment. The Court rejected these claims, holding that the activities involved affected the public interest and were therefore subject to the government's regulatory authority.
Heydon's case, rule in.
See MISCHIEF RULE.
Officia rnagistratus non dcbem case venalia
The offices of magistrates ought not to be sold.
Rule in Shelley's Case
Property. The rule that if - in a single grant - a freehold estate is given to a person and a remainder is given to the person's heirs, the remainder belongs to the named person and not the heirs, so that the person is held to have a fee simple absolute. ( The rule, which dates from the 14th century but draws its name from the famous 16thcentury case, has been abolished in most states. Wolfe u. Shelley, 76 Eng. Rep. 206 (K.B. 1581).
Rule in Wild's Case
Property. The rule construing a grant to "A and A's children" as a fee tail if A's children do not exist at the effective date of the instrument, and as a joint tenancy if A's children do exist at the effective date. * The rule has been abolished along with the fee tail in most states-
Shelley's Case, Rule in
See RULE IN SHELLEY'S CASE.
Whitehorse case. Slang
A reported case with (acts virtually identical to those of the instant. case, so that the disposition of the reported case should determine the outcome of the in stant case. - Also termed horse case; goose case gray mule case CF. ON ALL FOURS.
Wild's Case, Rule in.
See RULE IN WILD'S CASE.
action on the case.
See trespass on the case under TRESPASS.
active case.
A case that is still pending.
breaking a case
1 The voicing by one appellate judge to another judge on the same panel of a tentative view on how a case should be decided. 0 These informal expressions assist the judges in ascertaining how close they are to agreement. 2. The solving of a case by the police.
case agreed on.
See case stated under CASE.
case at bar.
A case under the immediate consideration of the court. - Also termed case at bench; instant case; present case
case at bench.
See case at bar under CASE.
case lawyer
An attorney whose knowledge is largely confined to a specific field of expertise."A working lawyer cannot expect to keep abreast of all this output of ideas, but he can at least study some portion so as to liberalize his views of law and to avoid the reproach of being a mere case lawyer." Lord Wright, The Study of Law, 54 Law Q. Rev. 185, 185 (1938)
case made
See case reserved.
case made.
See case reserved under CASE.
case method
See CASEBOOK METHOD.
case of first impression
A case that presents the court with issues of law that have not previously been decided in that jurisdiction.
case reserved.
See CASE.
case stated.
See CASE.
case system .
See CASEBOOK METHOD.
case-in-chief
1. The evidence presented at trial by the party with the burden of proof. 2. The part of a trial in which a party presents evidence to support its claim or defense. Cf. REBUTTAL.
case-management order
A court order designed to control the procedure in a case on the court's docket, esp. by limiting pretrial discovery. - Abbr. CMO.
case-or-controversy requirement
The constitutional requirement that, for a federal court to hear a case, the case must involve an actual dispute. See CONTROVERSY (3)."The courts of the United States do not sit to decide questions of law presented in a vacuum, but only such questions as arise in a 'case or controversy.' The two terms can be used interchangeably, for, we are authoritatively told, a 'controversy,' if distinguishable at all from a 'case,' is distinguishable only in that it is a less comprehensive term, and includes only suits of a civil nature." Charles Alan Wright, The Lau, of Federal Courts 60 (5th ed. 1994).
case-within-a-case rule.
Torts. The requirement that in a legal-malpractice action, the plaintiff must show that, but for the attorney's negligence, the plaintiff would have won the case underlying the malpractice action.
casebook method
An inductive system of teaching law in which students study specific cases to learn general legal principles. Professor Christopher C. Langdell introduced the technique at Harvard Law School in 1869. The casebook method is now the most widely used form of instruction in American law schools. -:11so termed case method; case system; Langdell method. Cf. HORNBOOK METHOD.
caseflow.
1. The movement of cases through the judicial system, from the initial filing to the final appeal. 2. An analysis of that movement.
caseload.
The volume of cases assigned to a given court, agency, officer, judge, law firm, or lawyer.
coronation =case
Any of the many lawsuits for breach of contract resulting from the postponement of the coronation of Edward VII because of his illness. ( In one case, for example, the defendant had agreed to hire a ship for watching the naval review by King Edward VII and for a day's cruise around the fleet. The court held that the contract was not frustrated by the cancellation of the naval review - the day's cruise around the fleet was still possible, and indeed, the ship could have been used for many other purposes.
death case
1. A criminal case in which the death penalty may be or h;ts been imposed. 2. WRONGFUL-DEATH ACTION
first impression, case of
See CASE.
general verdict subject to a special case
Archaic. A court's verdict rendered without regard to the jury's general verdict, given when a party does not want to put the legal question on the record but merely wants the court to decide on the basis of a written statement of all the facts in the case, prepared for the opinion of the court by counsel on either side, according to the principles of a special verdict, whereupon the court decides the special case submitted and gives judgment accordingly.
gray mule case.
See WHITEHORSE CASE.
hard case.
A lawsuit involving equities that tempt a judge to stretch or even disregard a principle of law at issue - hence the expression, "Hard cases make bad law."
horse case.
See WHITEHORSE CASE.
inactive case
A pending case that is not proceeding toward resolution. 0 This may occur for several reasons, such as nonservice, want of prosecution, or (in a criminal case) the defendant's having absconded. instant case. See case at bar. present case. See case at bar. special case. See case reserved test case. 1. A lawsuit brought to establish an important legal principle or right. ( Such an action is frequently brought by the parties' mutual consent on agreed facts - when that is so, a test case is also sometimes termed amicable action; amicable suit. 2. An action selected from several suits that are based on the same facts and evidence, that raise the same question of law, and that have a common plaintiff or a common defendant. ( Sometimes, when all parties agree, the court orders a consolidation and all parties are bound by the decision in the test case. - Also termed test action 2. A criminal investigation <the Manson case>. 3. An individual suspect or convict in relation to any aspect of the criminal justice system <the probation officer said he considers Mr. Jones a difficult case>. 4. An argument <the debater made a compelling case for gun control>. 5. An instance, occurrence, or situation <a case of mistaken identity> <a terminal case of cancer>. 6. TRESPASS ON THE CASE <the actions of trover and case are not enlirelv defunct>.
instant case
See case at bar under CASE.
law of the case
1 The doctrine holding that a decision rendered in a former appeal of a case is binding in a later appeal. 2. An earlier decision giving rise to the application of this doctrine. Cf. LAW OF THE TRIAL; RES JUDICATA; STARE DECISIS.
leading case
1. A judicial decision that first definitively settled an important legal rule or principle and that has since been often and consistently followed. ( An example is Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 86 S.Ct. 1602 (1966) (creating the exclusionary rule for evidence improperly obtained from a suspect being interrogated while in police custody). CE LANDMARK DECISION. 2. An important, often the most important, judicial precedent on a particular legal issue. 3. Loosely, a reported case that is cited as the dispositive authority on an issue being litigated. - Also termed (in sense 3) ruling case.
present case
See case at bar under CASE.