Labor Organization: A defined group of employees formed for the purposes of representing those employees with the employer as to the terms of a collective contract of employment. | Legal Definition of Labor Organization
Labor Union: A defined group of employees formed for the purposes of representing those employees with the employer as to the terms of a collective contract of employment. | Legal Definition of Labor Union
Laches: An allegation that a legal right is stale under the circumstances and noi longer able to support enforcement. | Legal Definition of Laches
Laissez-faire: French: leave alone. A theory of contract law that persons ought to have freedom of contract with minimal state or judicial interference. | Legal Definition of Laissez-faire
Lake: An expanse of standing water or a widened portion of a river. | Legal Definition of Lake
Landed Immigrant: An immigration law term; an individual who has relocated and changed his permanent residence to a state where he does not have citizenship but does limited rights associated with residency. | Legal Definition of Landed Immigrant
Landlord: A land or building owner who has leased the land, the building or a part of the land or building, to another person. | Legal Definition of Landlord
Lap Dancing: The intentional rubbing against men to please them in a sexual way. | Legal Definition of Lap Dancing
Larceny: A criminal offence now more commonly referred to as theft, covering the unlawful or fraudulent removal of another's property without the owner's consent. | Legal Definition of Larceny
Last Clear Chance Doctrine: A principle of tort law which requires an individual to take every action at hand to avoid an accident where peril to another human being is otherwise imminent. | Legal Definition of Last Clear Chance Doctrine
Law: Rules of conduct approved and enforced by the government of and over a certain territory (eg. the 'laws' of Australia). | Legal Definition of Law
Law French: The original language of the English courts after the Norman conquest. | Legal Definition of Law French
Law Journal: A scholarly or academic publication presenting commentary of emerging or topical developments in the law, and often specializing in a particular area of the law or legal information specific to a jurisdiction. | Legal Definition of Law Journal
Law Merchant: International commercial law; the law as it relates to merchant | Legal Definition of Law Merchant
Law of Nations: The body of rules that nations in the international community universally abide by, or accede to, out of a sense of legal obligation and mutual concern. | Legal Definition of Law of Nations
Law of Nature: The uncertain and elastic concept of regulation of conduct based on morality, conscience or God. | Legal Definition of Law of Nature
Law of the case Doctrine: When a court decides upon a rule of law, that decision should continue to govern the same issues in subsequent stages in the same case. | Legal Definition of Law of the case Doctrine
Law of the Flag: A principle of maritime and international law; that the sailors and vessel will be subject to the laws of the state corresponding to the flag flown by the vessel. | Legal Definition of Law of the Flag
Law Report: A serial publication which publishes, verbatim, judgments of a court of law. | Legal Definition of Law Report
Lawyer: An individual trained in the law and that has been certified to give legal advice or to represent others in litigation. | Legal Definition of Lawyer
Lawyer's League: A group of German jurists sympathetic to the Nazi Party before and during World War II. | Legal Definition of Lawyer's League
Lawyering: The work of a lawyer in giving legal advice or in suggesting an application of that law in advancing an issue of a client. | Legal Definition of Lawyering
Lay by the Heels: To commit to prison. | Legal Definition of Lay by the Heels
Lay Day: A term of a maritime law contract: days stipulated for the loading or unloading of cargo from a ship. | Legal Definition of Lay Day
Lay on the Table: Also “to table”; a term of parliamentary law and procedure which refers to a motion in regards to another motion being actively debated, but intended to defer a final disposition of the pending motion. | Legal Definition of Lay on the Table
Lay-Off: A temporary discharge of an employee. | Legal Definition of Lay-Off
Leading Question: A question which suggests an answer; usually answerable by yes or no. | Legal Definition of Leading Question
Learned Intermediary Doctrine: A doctrine of American personal injury law which places upon a prescribing physician the primary responsibility to warn patients of the hazards of prescribed pharmaceutical products. | Legal Definition of Learned Intermediary Doctrine
Lease: A special kind of contract between a property owner and a person wanting temporary enjoyment and exclusive use of the property, in exchange for rent paid to the property owner. | Legal Definition of Lease
Leasehold: Real property held under a lease. | Legal Definition of Leasehold
Legacy: A gift of a chattel by will. | Legal Definition of Legacy
Legal Citation: An acronym or abbreviation for a law report or other regular or periodic law or legal and authoritative publication directing a reader to the full document. | Legal Definition of Legal Citation
Legal Custody: A child custody decision which entails the right to make, or participate in, the significant decisions affecting a child’s health and welfare (compare with physical custody and joint custody). | Legal Definition of Legal Custody
Legal Fiction: A ruling on law based on hypothetical facts. | Legal Definition of Legal Fiction
Legal Professional Privilege: A shield against disclosure of communications between a solicitor and his/her client. | Legal Definition of Legal Professional Privilege
Legalese: Legal terms combined in long-winded sentences, or varied or with permutations, with the initial design of legal or drafting precision but which otherwise add unnecessary complexity or inadvertently resulting in confusion. | Legal Definition of Legalese
Legalism: The rigorous and ruthless adherence to the word of the law, usually combined with a policy to regulate as much as possible. | Legal Definition of Legalism
Legatee: The person to whom personal property is gifted pursuant to a will. | Legal Definition of Legatee
Legislation: Written and approved laws. | Legal Definition of Legislation
Legislative Branch: The elected law-making branch of government. | Legal Definition of Legislative Branch
Legislative Fact: Broad, general facts that are not unique and relate indirectly to the parties to litigation. | Legal Definition of Legislative Fact
Lessee: The tenant, the person to whom is granted exclusive possession of a thing under the terms of a lease. | Legal Definition of Lessee
Lessor: The landlord; a person who grants a lease, usually the owner of the thing being leased. | Legal Definition of Lessor
Letter of Credit: An undertaking to pay money on stated terms such as the occurrence of a specified event or document(s). | Legal Definition of Letter of Credit
Letters of Exculpation: Scots law: a subpoena, in the form of a warrant, to a material witness in a criminal matter to testify at trial. | Legal Definition of Letters of Exculpation
Letters Rogatory: A request of a judge in one jurisdiction to a court of another, to examine a specific witness. | Legal Definition of Letters Rogatory
Lettre de Cachet: A discretionary, arbitrary and often secret order issued by the King of France for the execution of some act. | Legal Definition of Lettre de Cachet
Lex Causae: Latin; law of the cause. | Legal Definition of Lex Causae
Lex Fori: Latin for the law of the forum. | Legal Definition of Lex Fori
Lex Loci: Latin; the law of a place as in where a right was acquired or a liability incurred. | Legal Definition of Lex Loci
Lex Loci Contractus: Latin: the law of the place where the contract is made. | Legal Definition of Lex Loci Contractus
Lex Loci Delecti: Latin: the place of the wrong. | Legal Definition of Lex Loci Delecti
Lex Non Cogit Ad Impossibilia: Latin: The law does not compel a man to do that which is impossible. | Legal Definition of Lex Non Cogit Ad Impossibilia
Lex Non Scripta: Unwritten law; the common or custom law. | Legal Definition of Lex Non Scripta
Lex Scripta: Written law; statutes. | Legal Definition of Lex Scripta
Lex Situs: A conflict of law rule that selects the applicable law based on the venue or location of something. | Legal Definition of Lex Situs
Liability: A legal obligation, either due now or at some time in the future. | Legal Definition of Liability
Libel: Written form of defamation such as on the Internet, in a newspaper or a letter. | Legal Definition of Libel
Liberal Construction: A form of construction which allows a judge to consider other factors when deciding the meaning of a phrase or document. | Legal Definition of Liberal Construction
License: A special permission to do something on, or with, somebody else’s property which, were it not for the license, could be legally prevented or give rise to legal action in tort or trespass. | Legal Definition of License
Licensee: The recipient or beneficiary of a license to use something. | Legal Definition of Licensee
Licensor: The person who grants a license to another, the latter called the licensee. | Legal Definition of Licensor
Lieber Code: The 1863 military code of conduct written by Francis Lieber at the request of US President Abraham Lincoln. | Legal Definition of Lieber Code
Lien: A property right which remains attached to an object that has been sold, but not totally paid for, until complete payment has been made. | Legal Definition of Lien
Life: Independent existence as an animate being. | Legal Definition of Life
Life Estate: A right to use and to enjoy land and/or structures on land only for the life of the life tenant. | Legal Definition of Life Estate
Life Tenant: The beneficiary of a life estate. | Legal Definition of Life Tenant
Lifting the Corporate Veil: Disregarding the general rule a corporation is a legal entity distinct from its shareholders by regarding the company as a mere agent or puppet of a controlling shareholder or parent corporation. | Legal Definition of Lifting the Corporate Veil
Ligan: Also "lagan"; things thrown from a ship and attached to a float or buoy to mark their location. | Legal Definition of Ligan
Limitation Fund: A guarantee or deposit made by a ship owner to meet any damage claim, and calculated on the negligent ship's tonnage. | Legal Definition of Limitation Fund
Limitations or Statute of Limitations: Loss of a legal right or cause of action because of the passage of time. | Legal Definition of Limitations or Statute of Limitations
Limited Partner: A unique colleague in a partnership relationship who has agreed to be liable only to the extent of his (or her) investment. | Legal Definition of Limited Partner
Limited Partnership: A partnership with at last one general partner and a limited partner, the latter contributing financially or otherwise but not otherwise involved in the business or, generally, personally liable for the debts of the partnership. | Legal Definition of Limited Partnership
Limited Power of Attorney: A POA limited by a condition or term or in regards to a specific item of property. | Legal Definition of Limited Power of Attorney
Limitrophe: Adjacent, bordering or contiguous. | Legal Definition of Limitrophe
Lincoln's Inn: One of four Inns of the Court, self-regulating associations of barristers in England and Wales. | Legal Definition of Lincoln's Inn
Lineal Descendant: A person who is a direct descendant such as a child to his or her natural parent. | Legal Definition of Lineal Descendant
Liquidated Damages: Pre-determined damages. | Legal Definition of Liquidated Damages
Liquidation: The converting of the the assets of a person into cash. | Legal Definition of Liquidation
Lis Pendens: Latin: a dispute or matter which is the subject of ongoing or pending litigation. | Legal Definition of Lis Pendens
Literal Construction: A form of construction which does not allow evidence extrapolated beyond the actual words of a phrase or document but, rather, takes a phrase or document at face value, giving effect only to the actual words used. | Legal Definition of Literal Construction
Litigant: A person who is a party to a legal action. | Legal Definition of Litigant
Litigation: A dispute is in 'litigation' (or being 'litigated') when it has become the subject of a formal court action or law suit. | Legal Definition of Litigation
Litigation Loan: A loan made by a third-party to litigation, typically a finance company, to a litigant to finance the litigation, and often on harsh terms. | Legal Definition of Litigation Loan
Litigation Privilege: Non-disclosure protection imposed on documents which come into existence after litigation commenced or in contemplation, and where they have been made with a view to such litigation, either for the purpose of obtaining advice as to such litigation, or of obtaining evidence to be used in such litigation, or of obtaining information which might lead to the obtaining of such evidence. | Legal Definition of Litigation Privilege
Livery: Delivery. | Legal Definition of Livery
Living Trust: A trust from persons to take effect during their living years, to benefit others. | Legal Definition of Living Trust
Living Will: A document that sets out guidelines for dealing with life-sustaining medical procedures in the eventuality of the signatory's sudden debilitation. | Legal Definition of Living Will
LL.B., LL.M. or LL.D.: Abbreviations for law degrees as in bachelor of law, master or law, or doctorate. | Legal Definition of LL.B., LL.M. or LL.D.
Lobbying: The attempt by special interest groups, directly or through agents, to influence the views of members of a deliberative assembly. | Legal Definition of Lobbying
Lockout: An employer's decision to bar unionized employees entry to the workplace until such time as they accept to work on the employer's terms and conditions or based on a lapsed collective bargaining agreement. | Legal Definition of Lockout
Locus: Latin: the place; venue. | Legal Definition of Locus
Locus Regit Actum: Latin: The law of the place where the facts occurred. | Legal Definition of Locus Regit Actum
Locus Standi: Latin: legal standing before a court. | Legal Definition of Locus Standi
Lodge Act: A 1950 law of the United States of America which allowed foreign nationals who enlisted in the US Army for at least a 5 year tour of duty, to obtain US citizenship. | Legal Definition of Lodge Act
LOF 2000: A Lloyd's standard form of salvage contract. | Legal Definition of LOF 2000
Loitering: To waste time; to be idle. | Legal Definition of Loitering
Long Arm Statutes: A statute which purports to regulate persons outside of its territorial jurisdiction. | Legal Definition of Long Arm Statutes
Long-Term Offender: A convicted person for whom there is a substantial risk of re-offending. | Legal Definition of Long-Term Offender
Lord Advocate: Scottish law: head of public prosecutions and the investigation of deaths. | Legal Definition of Lord Advocate
Loss of Enjoyment of Life: Damages claimed based on alleged detrimental alterations of a person's life or lifestyle or a person's inability to participate in the activities or pleasures of life that were formerly enjoyed. | Legal Definition of Loss of Enjoyment of Life
Lottery: An offer in which prizes and high value items are awarded by random chance to participants who buy lottery tickets. | Legal Definition of Lottery
Love: An emotional attachment towards another evidenced by kindness, consideration, understanding, patience, sacrifice or sufferance, if necessary, and words and actions. | Legal Definition of Love
Lubricum Linquae Non Facile Trahendum Est In Poena: Latin: the law tends to overlook rash or inconsiderate language spoken in the heat of the moment. | Legal Definition of Lubricum Linquae Non Facile Trahendum Est In Poena
Lucre: Financial advantage taken in bad faith. | Legal Definition of Lucre
Lunacy law: The law as it relates to the assessment and committal of persons incapable of managing themselves or their affairs. | Legal Definition of Lunacy law
Lunatic: An individual who, though once of sound mind, can no longer manage his person or his affairs. | Legal Definition of Lunatic
Lust: A strong desire for sexual relations. | Legal Definition of Lust