Constitution

The Constitution is anchored in English liberal thought and the Magna Carta.

The US Constitution was written in 1787.

As the search continued, I developed five criteria for the selection process. The next Chief Justice must have a top-flight legal mind; he must be young enough to serve at least ten years; he should, if possible, have experience both as a practicing lawyer and as an appeals court judge; he must generally share my view that the Court should interpret the Constitution rather than amend it by judicial fiat; and he must have a special quality of leadership that would enable him to resolve differences among his colleagues so that, as often as possible, the Court would speak decisively on major cases with one voice or at least with a strong voice for the majority opinion.

1978, Richard Nixon, RN: the Memoirs of Richard Nixon, Grosset & Dunlap, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, →OL, page 419:

The Constitution is very clear. My job was oversee the session of Congress where objections could be heard. And I made sure that objections would be recognized, so we would hear whatever evidence and other debate there was. But the Constitution says you open and count the votes, no more no less. The Constitution affords no authority to the Vice President or anyone else to reject votes or return votes to the states.

2023 July 5, Mike Pence, 7:52 from the start, in Watch All In With Chris Hayes Highlights: July 6, MSNBC, archived from the original on 2023-07-07:

(law) The supreme law of some countries, such as Australia, Ireland, and the United States.


penitentiary

pĕn'·ĭ·tĕnʹ·shə·rē

/ˌpɛnɪˈtɛnʃəɹi/

From Middle English penitentiary, from Medieval Latin pēnitentiārius (“place of penitence”), from Latin paenitentia (“penitence”), term used by the Quakers in Pennsylvania during the 1790s, describing a place for penitents to dwell upon their sins.

der

A priest in the Roman Catholic Church who administers the sacrament of penance.

rippipappi

priest who administers the sacrament of penance


patrol

en-noun

patrol (countable and uncountable, plural patrols)

From French patrouille, from Old French patrouille, patouille (“a night-watch”, literally “a tramping about”), from patrouiller, patouiller, patoiller (“to paddle or pudder in water, dabble with the feet, begrime, besmear”), from patte, pate (“paw, foot of an animal”), from Vulgar Latin *patta (“paw, foot”), from Frankish *patta (“paw, sole of the foot”), from Proto-Germanic *paþjaną, *paþōną (“to walk, tread, go, step, pace”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *(s)pent-, *(s)pat- (“path; to walk”), a variant of Proto-Indo-European *pent-, *pat- (“path; to go”); see find. Cognate with Dutch pad, patte (“paw”), Low German pedden (“to step, tread”), German patschen (“to splash, smack, dabble, waddle”), German Patsche (“a swatter, beater, paw, puddle, mire”). Related to pad, path.

cog

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Mélange a trois-patrol.wav

(law enforcement) The largest division of officers within a police department or sheriff's office, whose assignment is to patrol and respond to calls for service.


confession

en-noun

confession (countable and uncountable, plural confessions)

From Middle English confessioun, from Old French confession, from Latin cōnfessiō, cōnfessiōnem (“confession, acknowledgment, creed or avowal of one's faith”). Displaced native Old English andetnes. Doublet of confessio.
Morphologically confess + -ion.

der

I went to confession and now I feel much better about what I had done.

Hauing diſpleaſ'd my Father, to Lawrence Cell, / To make confeſſion, and to be abſolu'd.

c. 1591–1595 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Romeo and Ivliet”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, (please specify the scene number in lowercase Roman numerals)]:

Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church

sacrament of reconciliation
sacrament of reconciliation

(Christianity) The disclosure of one's sins to a priest for absolution. In the Roman Catholic Church, it is now also termed the sacrament of reconciliation.


swindle

en-verb

swindle (third-person singular simple present swindles, present participle swindling, simple past and past participle swindled)

swindles (present singular third-person)
swindling (participle present)
swindled (participle past)
swindled (past)

Back-formation from swindler, from German Schwindler, from German schwindeln, from Middle High German swindeln, swindelen, from Old High German swintiln, frequentative of the verb swintan, from Proto-West Germanic *swindan (“to diminish”).
See also Modern German schwindeln, Danish svindel and svindle, Dutch zwindelen and zwendelen, Yiddish שווינדל (shvindl), Low German swinneln, Middle English swinden (“to languish, waste away”).

cog

The two men swindled the company out of $160,000.


Met

The Metropolitan Police has referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) over its handling of the investigation. […] The Met said it had informed its own Directorate of Professional Standards and a "mandatory referral will be made to the IOPC in relation to the initial contact from the woman's friend".

2024 April 11, Victoria Cook, “Westminster murder inquiry: Woman, 27, named by police”, in bbc.com:

(London, law enforcement) The Metropolitan Police Service of London (MPS).


PH

en-noun

PH (countable and uncountable, plural PHs)

preliminary hearing
preliminary hearing#English

(law) Initialism of preliminary hearing.


Roe

From a Middle English nickname meaning a roe.

Ultimately, Ms. Bottone said she just wanted to know whether she could keep driving in the H.O.V. lane for the remainder of her pregnancy, as she said she had in her previous pregnancies, long before the overturning of Roe.

2022 July 12, Luke Vander Ploeg, “Can You Drive Alone in the H.O.V. Lane if You’re Pregnant? A Post-Roe Quandary.”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:

(US, law, US politics, informal) Ellipsis of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 US Supreme Court case which legalized abortion and reaffirmed the existence of a right to privacy under due process following the 14th Amendment.


Holocaust

en-proper noun

the Holocaust (usually uncountable, plural Holocausts)

the Holocaust (canonical)
Holocausts (plural)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-Holocaust.wav

(historical, strictly) The systematic mass murder (genocide) of six million Jews perpetrated by Nazi Germany shortly before and during World War II.

Sjoa

the mass murder of six million Jews by Nazi Germany

Holocaust

the mass murder of 11–14 million people by Nazi Germany


Zeta

A member of Los Zetas, a Mexican criminal syndicate.


VAT

(taxation) Initialism of value added tax.

BTW

initialism for value-added tax — see also value added tax


scot

From Middle English scot, scott, from Old English scot, scott, sċeot, ġescot (“contribution; payment; tax; fine”), from Old Norse skot, from Proto-Germanic *skutą (“that which is thrown or cast; projectile; missile”), related to English shoot. Later influenced by Old French escot (Modern écot), itself of Germanic origin. Doublet of shot.

der

(UK, historical) A local tax, paid originally to the lord or ruler and later to a sheriff.


Trinity

(UK, Ireland, law, education) Ellipsis of Trinity term.


Union

(locomotive): Derived from the name of the only U.S. company to use that configuration.

(chiefly India, with determiner, law) Alternative form of union


interlocutory

(law) Expressed during a legal action that awaits final decision.

(law) Of or pertaining to legal action that is temporary or provisional.


chop shop

Apparently his stolen car had been taken to a chop shop, as the police only recovered the frame.

Once the car is in a chop shop, a skilled cutter can reduce it to salable parts in half an hour to 45 minutes.

1979, “The Car-Theft Boom”, in Newsweek, page 100:

New York City sports a number of chop shops, as do Chicago, Detroit and most other large metropolitan areas.[…]If they can′t find the right engine, the junkyard may call a chop shop contact to get someone on the street looking for the right make and year.

1987 August 20, Ed Heney, “Outsmart the Car Thieves”, in Kiplinger's Personal Finance, page 32:

“A chop shop disassembles the entire car, so they need a location that is secluded, like a warehouse or a vacant factory — although today′s forfeiture laws tend to discourage chop shops.”

2009, Taylor Joseph, Allison Investigates, Four Star Publishing, page 94:

(US) A facility where stolen motor vehicles are disassembled in order to sell their mechanical parts.


interdict

From Middle English entrediten, from Old French entredire (“forbid”), from Latin interdīcō (“prohibit, forbid”), from inter- (“between”) + dīcō (“say”), from Proto-Indo-European *deyḱ-.

The Fife County Council, and other objectors, were successful in July [1950] in obtaining an interim interdict against this decision, but the Court of Session withdrew the interdict in January, and it was then stated that a civil court had no jurisdiction in the matter. […] Mr. Waller adds that when the railway was authorised in 1897, one of the clauses of the Act authorising the transfer of the line to the North British Railway provided that that company should work it in perpetuity, and it was this clause that caused the interim interdict to be granted.

1951 April, “Notes and News: North Fife Line, Scotland”, in Railway Magazine, number 600, page 281:

In May [1995], the court issued an interdict preventing the service withdrawal, pending consultation on the closure to passenger traffic of three short stretches of railway around Glasgow and its hinterland that were only used by the Fort William Sleeper - and for which BR had failed to invoke standard closure procedures.

2021 August 25, David Clough, “The Sleeper experience”, in RAIL, number 938, page 61:


interdict

en-verb

interdict (third-person singular simple present interdicts, present participle interdicting, simple past and past participle interdicted)

interdicts (present singular third-person)
interdicting (participle present)
interdicted (participle past)
interdicted (past)

An archbishop [may not only] excommunicate and interdict his suffragans, but his Vicar-General may also do the same.

1726, John Ayliffe, Parergon Juris Canonici Anglicani: Or, A Commentary, by Way of Supplement to the Canons and Constitutions of the Church of England. […], London: […] D. Leach, and sold by John Walthoe […], →OCLC:

(transitive, Roman Catholicism) To exclude (someone or somewhere) from participation in church services; to place under a religious interdict.


refresher

(law) A fee paid to counsel to continue with a case, especially one that was adjourned.


cold case

‘I had my researchers check the files on all the mispers and cold cases five years either side of that date estimate, on females of that approximate age. This is what they found. Fill your boots.’ He took a large gulp of his drink. / ‘I’m impressed, you've been moving fast.’ / ‘On it like a car bonnet, mate.’

2015, Peter James, You Are Dead, New York, N.Y.: Minotaur Books, →ISBN:

(law enforcement, slang) A criminal investigation that has not been solved after a considerable time but remains on the books and may be reopened when new evidence appears.


riparian

/ɹʌɪˈpɛːɹɪən/

/ɹɪˈpɛːɹɪən/

Borrowed from Latin rīpārius (“relating to a riverbank”) + -an.

bor

(chiefly law) A person or other entity that lives or owns property along the shore of a river.


rog

en-noun

rog (countable and uncountable, plural rogs)

(law, informal) an interrogatory (sense 1)


affirm

en-verb

affirm (third-person singular simple present affirms, present participle affirming, simple past and past participle affirmed)

affirms (present singular third-person)
affirming (participle present)
affirmed (participle past)
affirmed (past)

From Middle English affermen, from Old French afermer, affermer, from Latin affirmare, adfirmare (“to present as fixed, aver, affirm”), from ad (“to”) + firmare (“to make firm”), from firmus (“firm”).

To make firm; to confirm, or ratify; especially (law) to assert or confirm, as a judgment, decree, or order, brought before an appellate court for review.

(law) To state under a solemn promise to tell the truth which is considered legally equivalent to an oath, especially of those who have religious or other moral objections to swearing oaths; also solemnly affirm.


capital stock

en-noun

capital stock (usually uncountable, plural capital stocks)

(law, accounting, US) The total amount of common and preferred stock (shares) that a company can issue.


coterminous

From Latin conterminus, from con- (“with”) + terminus (“border, end”). The spelling with co- instead of con- is probably influenced by the related prefix co-.

(law) Said of linked or related property leases that expire together.


solicitor

From Middle French soliciteur. Equivalent to solicit + -or.

In many common law jurisdictions, a type of lawyer whose traditional role is to offer legal services to clients apart from acting as their advocate in court. A solicitor instructs barristers to act as an advocate for their client in court, although rights of audience for solicitors vary according to jurisdiction.

初級律師

lawyer offering legal services to clients apart from acting as court advocate


J

In the result, six members of the Court (Dawson J. dissenting) are in agreement that the common law of this country recognizes a form of native title which, in the cases where it has not been extinguished, reflects the entitlement of the indigenous inhabitants, in accordance with their laws or customs, to their traditional lands and that, subject to the effect of some particular Crown leases, the land entitlement of the Murray Islanders in accordance with their laws or customs is preserved, as native title, under the law of Queensland. The main difference between those members of the Court who constitute the majority is that, subject to the operation of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 (Cth), neither of us nor Brennan J. agrees with the conclusion to be drawn from the judgments of Deane, Toohey and Gaudron JJ. that, at least in the absence of clear and unambiguous statutory provision to the contrary, extinguishment of native title by the Crown by inconsistent grant is wrongful and gives rise to a claim for compensatory damages.

1992 June 3, Chief Justice Anthony Mason, Justice Michael McHugh, “Mabo v Queensland (No 2)”, in Australasian Legal Information Institute, High Court of Australia:

(law, postnominal) (plural JJ) Abbreviation of judge or justice.


UCO

UCO (countable and uncountable, plural UCOs)

(UK, law enforcement) Initialism of undercover officer.


R

The English case of R v R [1992] AC 599 ruled that rape can be committed by a husband against his wife.

(law) the Crown, the government of a monarchy (abbreviating rex (“king”) or regina (“queen”))


whistle-blower

From whistle + blower, referring to a police officer blowing their whistle on observing a violation of the law.

We owe it to a small group of brave whistle-blowers that we know about the infractions at all.

Usually the whistleblower is not fired outright. The organization's goal is to disconnect the act of whistleblowing from the act of retaliation, which is why so much legislation to protect whistleblowers is practically irrelevant. The usual practice is to demoralize and humiliate the whistleblower, putting him or her under so much psychological stress that it becomes difficult to do a good job.

2012, Frederick D. Lipman, Whistleblowers, Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley, →ISBN, page 60:

The huge breach of the National Security Agency’s domestic surveillance program in June 2013 was one of the proudest moments in modern journalism, and one of the purest: A brave and disgusted whistle-blower, Edward Snowden, revealed the government’s extensive surveillance of American and foreign citizens.

2020 September 14, Ben Smith, “The Intercept Promised to Reveal Everything”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:

(slang, chiefly US) One who reports a problem or violation to the authorities; especially, an employee or former employee who reports a violation by an employer.

ազդարար

one who reports a problem or violation to the authorities


drop-dead

drop-dead date

The intruding investor (VC #2) makes an offer at a pre-money valuation of $15 million, subject to due diligence, and the expiration of the "drop dead" date, meaning the date in the initial investor's term sheet when exclusivity expires.

2003, Joseph W. Bartlett, Ross Barrett, Michael Butler, Advanced Private Equity Term Sheets and Series A Documents:

As the drop-dead date approaches, my mind becomes more focused.

2010, Richard L. Daft, The Executive and the Elephant, page 96:

If the assets [of a steel mill] were not sold by a fixed date, […]the “drop-dead” provision of the settlement agreement would take effect. Under that provision, the mills would be closed, the stay would be lifted, and the secured creditors would take possession. Probably neither the debtor nor the secured creditors believed that a sale could be completed before the drop-dead date.

2019, Lynn M. LoPucki, Elizabeth Warren, Robert M. Lawless, Secured Transactions: A Systems Approach, page 107:

(informal, not comparable, business, law) Absolutely final; being the deadline, especially in relation to a date set out in a contract upon which adverse consequences will flow if the contract has not been fulfilled.


P

(law) Initialism of patient. (the subject of proceedings in the Court of Protection)


prender

Audio (US)

Borrowed from French prendre (“to take”), from Latin prehendere (“to take”).

(law) The power or right of taking a thing before it is offered


drive-by

A crime, such as a shooting, carried out from a moving vehicle.


exigent

From Latin exigēns, present active participle of exigō (“demand, require”).

They also make forthe writs of executions, and of seifin, writs of super seders, for appearance to exigents

(obsolete, British, law) A writ in proceedings before outlawry.


decapitalize

en-verb

decapitalize (third-person singular simple present decapitalizes, present participle decapitalizing, simple past and past participle decapitalized)

decapitalizes (present singular third-person)
decapitalizing (participle present)
decapitalized (participle past)
decapitalized (past)

In 1801 Connecticut decapitalized arson, but only where no victim's life had been placed in danger.

2009, Stuart Banner, The Death Penalty: an American history, page 131:

(transitive, law) To remove (something's) status as a capital crime; to cause (something) to no longer be a capital crime.


chain gang

(cycling) A group of cyclists riding in a close-knit formation akin to a road race, normally for the purposes of training.

ryhmäajo

a group of cyclists riding in a close-knit formation


amortize

amortize (third-person singular simple present amortizes, present participle amortizing, simple past and past participle amortized)

amortizes (present singular third-person)
amortizing (participle present)
amortized (participle past)
amortized (past)

From Middle English amortisen, from Old French amortir (via the stem amortiss-), from Vulgar Latin *admortīre, derived from Latin mortuus (“dead”).

(real estate, property law, transitive) To alienate (property) in mortmain.


matron

From Middle English matrone, from Old French matrone, from Latin mātrōna (“married woman”), from māter (“mother”). Doublet of matrona.


indecent exposure

en-noun

indecent exposure (usually uncountable, plural indecent exposures)

(law) The crime of intentionally exposing one's genitalia in public; in some cases also including the act of public urination and defecation.


W

Abbreviations of various words beginning with W.

(law enforcement) Abbreviation of warrant.


Mafioso

From Italian mafioso, from Sicilian mafiusu.

Coordinate term: (rare) Mafiosa

The widow of one murdered Mafioso gave her son the bloody jacket that her husband had been killed in. […] So far there has not been a Mafiosa who has made it to the top on her own.

1998, World Press Review, volume 45, page 43, columns 1–2:

“Sometimes, I swear you have no idea about the concept of money. Only you could give a one-of-a-kind ring to a female Mafioso, so casually.”

2010, Jess Phillips, Roxy’s Sequel, [Morrisville, N.C.]: Lulu.com, →ISBN, page 176:

Ninetta had grown up in a Mafia village, her family was Mafia, and she had fallen in love with a Mafioso. And she was a Mafiosa herself.

2015, Attilio Bolzoni, Giuseppe D’Avanzo, translated by Shaun Whiteside, The Boss of Bosses: The Life of the Infamous Totò Riina, Dreaded Head of the Sicilian Mafia, London: Orion Books, →ISBN:

“As the library grows in popularity, the community gets stronger and she gets more powerful. She ultimately goes from this timorous lady to a local kingpin. Kind of like a female Mafioso. And then someone crosses her so she has a vengeance to play out.”

2019, Michelle Frances, The Temp, New York, N.Y.: Kensington Books, →ISBN, page 301:

Plotted from the beginning fitting a plan for a Mafioso dictator / Never deviating from the decision to be the first for a throwaway bride / Whims and whimsical thinking guides the denial of the Mafiosa.

2019, Rosemarie M. Neilson, “The Throwaway Bride”, in Terrible Trauma Like a Poem, Bloomington, Ind.: AuthorHouse, →ISBN:

An (especially male) member of the Mafia.


recidivism

recidivism (countable and uncountable, plural recidivisms)

/ɹəˈsɪdəvəzm̩/

From French récidivisme, from Latin recidīvus (“returning, recurring”). Compare recidivous, -ism.

uder

alcohol(ic) recidivism

(by extension) Returning to a negative behavior after having stopped it for a period of time.


Adam Tiler

"In the same way as I got this," showing a handful of silver, "by turning autem diver, or, if you like it better, my Adam tiler."
"I do not understand you, Billy!"
"Why, an autem diver is a pickpocket who practises in a church, and an Adam tiler his associate, who receives his booty …"

1823, Tales of my Father, and my Friends, printed for T. and G. Underwood, Fleet Street, and Macredie, Skelly, and Co., Edinburgh; page 90–91

He waved his hand. "Well, you know how these sods gas. Most likely there's nothing in it. It's a cert Gursey sank dead on the gutter at the Flat. It'd be hard to prove he was Jem's Adam Tiler."

1934, Brian Penton, Landtakers: The Story of an Epoch

"In Mr Yarde's picturesque but somewhat obscure language, he — er — tipped the cole to Adam Tiler. Have I that right?'
'How the d-devil should I know?' snapped Brandon.
'You must forgive me. You seem to me to be so familiar with — er — thieves and — er — swashbucklers, that I assumed that you were conversant also with thieving cant.'

1940 (2009 edition), Georgette Heyer, The Corinthian, page 112

“And do you know what an Adam Tiler does?” Wickham looked a bit embarrassed. “Is he employed in the repair of roofs, sir?”
...
“An Adam Tiler is the associate of a Fork, better known as a pickpocket.”

2007, S. Thomas Russell, Under Enemy Colors:

“Then Sue lifted his passkey as he turned to go back to the office.”
“Lifted?” I said. “So now you've got the lingo down? Next you'll be telling me about marks, nippers, and Adam Tilers.” The Adam Tiler bit brought a puzzled look from even Sue.
“Oh, oh, I was the misdirection,” Narlene blurted. “I sort of let my pareo slip off of my shoulder at just the right time.”

2007, Ronnie Blackwell, Spite, page 154:

(idiomatic, archaic, thieves' cant and slang) A pickpocket's accomplice; the person who takes the goods a pickpocket steals and leaves with them.


K

Abbreviations.
# (stenoscript) Abbreviation of counter, prefix counter-, sequence contr.

ng

prefix <i class="Latn mention" lang="en">counter-</i>, sequence contr.

(law, informal) Abbreviation of contract.


act of parliament

en-noun

act of parliament (plural acts of parliament)

No cloggings, lumps of dirt, or underlocks should be suffered to be rolled up with the fleece, as such a practice is unfair to the purchaser, and by act of parliament there is a heavy penalty attached to those who are convicted of doing it.

1839, British Farmer's Magazine, volume 3, page 187:

A law which has received assent (royal, presidential or gubernatorial) after having been passed by the houses (or house) of a parliament.


angle for farthings

en-verb

angle for farthings (third-person singular simple present angles for farthings, present participle angling for farthings, simple past and past participle angled for farthings)

angles for farthings (present singular third-person)
angling for farthings (participle present)
angled for farthings (participle past)
angled for farthings (past)

(obsolete, idiomatic) To beg out of a prison window with a cap, or box, let down at the end of a long string.


PO

(law enforcement) Initialism of police officer.

probation officer
probation officer#English

(law enforcement) Initialism of probation officer.


omertà

en-noun

omertà (countable and uncountable, plural omertàs)

/ˌəʊmɛːˈtɑː/

From Italian omertà – even though a further etymology is disputed – italianization of Sicilian umirtà (“the quality of being humble, quiet, soft”). Some see it as a southern dialectal variant of umiltà (“humility”), from Latin humilitās, from humilis (“humble”), from humus (“ground, soil”), in which case it is a doublet of humility. Other sources (as the OED) interpret it as a Sicilian calque (loan translation) of Spanish hombredad (“manliness”), altered to fit Sicilian omu (“man”); in this latter case though “ummirità” should be the natural phonological output.

der

Patriarca pleaded guilty in December 1991 to racketeering and conspiracy charges, but he refused to admit he was a member of the Mafia, clinging to his vow of ‘omerta’ to the secret organization.

There was a time that high-profile killings such as the 1968 assassinations of Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. brought passionate cries for limitations on handguns. A bipartisan omerta now smothers the issue.

The FDA was not pleased that the omertà had been broken.

2016 October 20, “How the FDA Manipulates the Media”, in Scientific American:

Despite criticising what he called an “omertà” in British politics about Brexit, he expressed some sympathy for the Labour leader Keir’s wariness about the issue.

2023 October 6, Heather Stewart, quoting Sadiq Khan, “‘Choose London’: Sadiq Khan steps up efforts to lure EU citizens post-Brexit”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

Judith Godrèche, an actor who has accused two high-profile directors of raping her as a teenager, will address France’s most prestigious film awards ceremony on Friday in an unusual move aimed at breaking what she calls the “omertà” surrounding the abuse of women and girls in the industry.

2024 February 21, Kim Willsher, quoting Judith Godrèche, “Judith Godrèche to address French cinema’s ‘omertà’ around #MeToo”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

(crime) A code of silence amongst members of a criminal organization (especially the Mafia) that forbids divulging insider secrets to law enforcement, often also followed outside of the organization in fear of retaliation; (by extension) any code of silence.

أُومِيرْتَا

code of silence amongst members of the Mafia or other criminal organization


cease and desist

en-verb

cease and desist (third-person singular simple present ceases and desists, present participle ceasing and desisting, simple past and past participle ceased and desisted)

ceases and desists (present singular third-person)
ceasing and desisting (participle present)
ceased and desisted (participle past)
ceased and desisted (past)

From cease (“stop”), and desist (“to not do again”).

We are told to cease and desist or we will cease to exist.


cease and desist

a cease-and-desist letter; a cease-and-desist order

copyright infringement
copyright infringement

(law, chiefly attributive) A demand that one stop and not resume continuing a certain behavior, such as copyright infringement, trademark infringement, slander, or libel.


piracy

en-noun

piracy (countable and uncountable, plural piracies)

From Medieval Latin pīrātia, from Classical Latin pīrāta + ia, or Ancient Greek πειρατεία (peirateía).

How should the international community respond to Somali piracy?

(crime, nautical) Robbery at sea, a violation of international law; taking a ship away from the control of those who are legally entitled to it.

Some video game consoles use specially designed cartridges to make software piracy more difficult.

2022 March 11, “Russia has reportedly legalised piracy in the face of economic sanctions”, in GamesIndustry.biz:

intellectual property
intellectual property

The unauthorized duplication of goods protected by intellectual property law.

bootlegging

breaking intellectual property law by making unauthorized copies


goodfella

From good + fella. Popularised by the US crime film GoodFellas (1990).


modus operandi

modus operandi (plural modi operandi or modus operandis)

modi operandi (plural)
modus operandis (plural)

Borrowed from Latin modus operandī, from modus (“manner, method”) and operandī (“of working”).

(law enforcement) A known criminal's established habits and mode of work when committing specific offences, especially fraud, matched with characteristics of an unsolved crime to narrow down (limit to a specific list) or profile suspects.


injuria

/ɪnˈdʒʊəɹi.ə/

Borrowed from Latin iniuria. Doublet of injury.

(law) injury; invasion of another's rights


Roman

en-adj

Roman (comparative more Roman, superlative most Roman)

more Roman (comparative)
most Roman (superlative)

From Old French Romain, from Latin Rōmānus. In reference to the Byzantine Empire, via the Byzantine Greek endonym Ῥωμαῖος (Rhōmaîos). By surface analysis, Rome + -an. Doublet of Romano.

You will find the term defined at the end of Roman one.

(law, colloquial) Used to distinguish a Roman numeral from an Arabic numeral in oral discourse.


Mafia

From Italian mafia. Perhaps from Italian mafia (“spirit of hostility to the law”) or from Sicilian mafiusu (“boldness, bravado”). See the Wikipedia article for more discussion of the origin of the word. Doublet of mafiya.

der

Somehow he managed to upset the Russian Mafia.

The Mob: any particular mafia, mentioned uniquely within the discussion's established or implicit context, usually and especially the Sicilian-Italian–Italian-American one (especially in American English) but occasionally others (e.g., the Russian one, the Japanese one).

Any other specific organized crime syndicate operating internationally in high-level organized crime; often with a modifying adjective, such as a nationality.


cat burglar

/kæt ˈbɜːɡlə/

/ˈkæt ˌbɝɡlɚ/

The police were baffled by the exploits of a cat burglar who only stole from the upper floors of high-rise apartments.

A particularly stealthy burglar, especially one who gains undetected entry through the use of agility.


constituent

From Latin cōnstituēns, present participle of cōnstituō (“I establish”), from com- (“together”) + statuo (“I set, place, establish”); see statute or statue, and compare institute and restitute.

(law) One who appoints another to act for him as attorney in fact


consent decree

(law) A decree of a court giving effect to an agreement between the litigating parties.


DPOA

(law) Initialism of durable power of attorney.


criminology

en-noun

criminology (countable and uncountable, plural criminologies)

"So that then begins a sort of rethinking of my idea of criminology," Weisburd said. "Like most other people, my studies were about people. I said, maybe we ought to be more concerned with places."

2019, Malcolm Gladwell, Talking to Strangers, page 283:

The study of crime and criminals, especially their behaviour.

kriminologjia

the study of crime and criminals, especially their behaviour


fiqh

fiqh (usually uncountable, plural fiqhs)

From Arabic فِقْه (fiqh, “intelligence, knowledge”)

bor

Various fiqhs (schools of jurisprudence) of Islam have different punishment for blasphemy, […]

2021, Ahmed Sayeed, Truth is Law, Faith is Flaw, page 180:

(Islam) Jurisprudence in the Islamic law, shari'a.


footpad

en-verb

footpad (third-person singular simple present footpads, present participle footpadding, simple past and past participle footpadded)

footpads (present singular third-person)
footpadding (participle present)
footpadded (participle past)
footpadded (past)

When Mr. Kaiser was footpadded last December, the scare seemed to penetrate even the quiet town of Berkeley.

1894, The Blue and Gold - Volume 21, page 172:

Before that 'e footpadded round Covent Garden with a crew o' other masterless soldiers an' suchlike, calling 'imself "Captain Gun", as nasty a bill o' goods as ever slit your pocket or cut your throat,' Pope added, with loathing for the many thousands of defeated men who had limped home to live off the city streets which, by right and custom already belonged to established families of beggars and pickpockets, dog snatchers and cloak snitchers.

1988, Michael Talbot, To the ends of the earth, page 15:

To his first investment, Jack adds the money stolen by footpadding, all of which comes to £94 (CJ, 77).

1996, James Thompson, Models of value: eighteenth-century political economy and the novel:

(archaic) To rob travellers on the road.


TUPE

w:Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006

(UK, law) Acronym of Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006.


POA

power of attorney
power of attorney#English


SORA

(law) Acronym of Sex Offenders Registration Act.


HIPAA

(US, law) Acronym of Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.


CJ

And though in Dodd and Eletcher the judgment was reversed, it was to the dissatisfaction of C. J. Holt, and other judges […]

1792, Reports of Cases Argued and Adjudged in the Court of King's Bench: In the Eleventh and Twelfth Years of the Reign of King George the Second. [1737-1738]:

criminal justice
criminal justice#English


PPO

en-noun

PPO (countable and uncountable, plural PPOs)

(law) Initialism of personal protection order.


FOP

FOP (countable and uncountable, plural FOPs)

freedom of panorama
freedom of panorama#English

(law) Initialism of freedom of panorama.


MCL

(law) Initialism of Michigan Compiled Laws.


PD

PD (countable and uncountable, plural PDs)

police department
police department#English

(law enforcement) Initialism of police department.


squib

Possibly imitative of a small explosion.

unk

Possibly

(law) In a legal casebook, a short summary of a legal action placed between more extensively quoted cases.


qadi

From Arabic قَاضٍ (qāḍin, “judge”). Doublet of alcalde, casis, and cauzee.

To this the Jew agreed, and the two went together to the great hall, in which the kadi was administering justice.

legal treatises dealing with the subject usually spoke of the appointment to office of a qadi [...].

1985, Yasmin Hussain, Sharon Siddique, Ahmad Ibrahim, Readings on Islam in Southeast Asia:

The Qazi, his spiritual adviser, had recommended that the Russian be taken out into the desert and buried alive [...].

1990, Peter Hopkirk, The Great Game, Folio Society, published 2010, page 74:

While sharia law for divorce in many Muslim countries has been modified by governments, in Israel reform was initiated by qadis.

2011 July 22, Jill Hamilton, The Guardian:

(Islam, law) A judge who is trained in and practices Islamic law


CAA

(law) Initialism of court-appointed attorney.


APA

(law) Initialism of assistant prosecuting attorney.


MCR

(law) Initialism of Michigan Court Rules.


shari'a

From Arabic شَرِيعَة (šarīʕa, literally “path, way”).

bor

The legislation of shari'a here is very strict.

(Islam) A body of religious law forming a part of the Islamic tradition based on the scriptures of Islam, particularly the Qur'an and hadith.


ADR

en-noun

ADR (countable and uncountable, plural ADRs)

/eɪ diː ˈɑː/

alternative dispute resolution
alternative dispute resolution#English

(law) Initialism of alternative dispute resolution.


ADR

/eɪ diː ˈɑː/

(road transport, international law) The Agreement of 30 September 1957 concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road; formerly the European Agreement concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road.


HR

HR (countable and uncountable, plural HRs)

/eɪt͡ʃ ɑː(ɹ)/

(law, politics) Initialism of house resolution.


up the river

A reference to Sing Sing prison, which is located on the Hudson river, to the north of (and upstream from) New York City.

The former baseball player that Cincinnati idolized is being sent up the river to Ashland, Ky., to serve a prison term for cheating on his taxes.

1990 July 21, “Pete Rose: He doesn't belong in the Hall of Fame”, in Dallas Morning News, retrieved 2010-09-23:


roundup

(law enforcement) The similar police activity of gathering together suspects.


RCMP

Canada had an international reputation for politeness. The RCMP Special Branch did not.

2020, Patrick Ness, Burn, Walker Books Ltd (2021), page 50:

Royal Canadian Mounted Police
w:Royal Canadian Mounted Police

(Canada, law enforcement) Initialism of Royal Canadian Mounted Police.


cronyism

cronyism (countable and uncountable, plural cronyisms)

From crony (“close friend”) + -ism (suffix forming names of a tendency of action, behaviour, condition, opinion, or state belonging to a class or group of persons).

suffix

[T]he present structure of the collective bargaining agreement, combined with nepotism and cronyism and other abuses in employment and referral practices, have perpetuated the effects of the past discrimination, […]

1974 September 19, Lawrence W[arren] Pierce, United States District Judge, “Memorandum Opinion and Order”, in John R. Patterson, et al., Plaintiffs, v Newspaper and Mail Deliverers’ Union of New York and Vicinity, et al., Defendants. […], page 23a:

[Robert L.] Hagist began what he called an "18 month reform program" that included revised warehouse procedures and measures to prevent the leakages, shortages, cronyisms, and politicking attributed to the managers and clerks of the various stores.

1988, Norman H. Clark, “Booze and Politics, 1933–83”, in The Dry Years: Prohibition and Social Change in Washington, revised edition, Seattle, Wash., London: University of Washington Press, →ISBN, page 258:

If we are going to reauthorize the National Endowment, we need to see to it that the Endowment, in its procedures, are open, one. […] That there is a cessation of a long-term practice of cronyisms on the panels so that artists across the Nation have equal access to this.

1990 April 4, Dick Armey, witness, Hearing on the Reauthorization of the National Endowment for the Arts and the Humanities: Hearings before the Subcommittee on Postsecondary Education of the Committee on Education and Labor, House of Representatives, One Hundred First Congress, Second Session […] (Serial No. 101-78), volume 3, Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, →OCLC, page 35:

[C]ommunism is predicated upon a central structure of economic command that is singularly entrusted with allocating resources and making economic decisions. Because of this centralized command structure, communist societies fall prey to the forces of cronyism and influence-peddling as commune members without economic power curry favor with commune leaders that control access to resources.

2013 April, Randall G[regory] Holcombe, Andrea M. Castillo, “Communism”, in Liberalism and Cronyism: Two Rival Political and Economic Systems, Mercatus Center at George Mason University, →ISBN, page 31:

Patronage, nepotism, cronyism, abuse of power, and criminal activity flourish, sometimes for decades, in numerous town halls, police stations, and special-purpose government agencies in the suburbs.

2015, Thomas J. Gradel, Dick Simpson, “Suburban Scandals”, in Corrupt Illinois: Patronage, Cronyism, and Criminality, Urbana; Chicago, Ill.: University of Illinois Press, →ISBN, page 117:

Critics accuse her [von der Leyen] of serious missteps over the pandemic, the Gaza war, alleged cronyism, – and of having a high-handed manner.

2024 May 4, Simon Tisdall, “Giorgia Meloni and Ursula von der Leyen, the double act that is steering the EU ever rightwards”, in The Observer, →ISSN:

(originally US, derogatory) Favouritism to friends without regard for their qualifications; especially (politics), in their appointment to political positions.

وَاسِطَة

favouritism to friends without regard for their qualifications

[T]he preacher […] was reading to them the duty of loving one another as Christians, But only particularly and exclusively were they to love one another "as Christians," that is as confederates and caballers together in a particular interest, distinct from that of the great family of mankind; […] The benefit to themselves from this Free-masonry sectarian cronyism, (for which the uninitiated world is so much obliged to them) was, to be, that […] [t]he spirit of God was to bear witness with their spirits, and to settle the matter of faith with a degree of conviction, that should render reason superfluous and inquiry unnecessary.

1829 June 26, Robert Taylor, “Characterism of Leeds”, in The Lion, volume III, number 26, London: Richard Carlile, […], →OCLC, page 813:

Our friend the Old Crony, we see, for all his connoisseurship and crony-ism, his regard for a certain piquancy of perfection in the French dress and walk, and his wish that his fair countrywomen would "take steps" after their fashion, cannot get rid of the preference in which he was brought up for the beauty of the English countenance.

1840, Leigh Hunt, “English and French Females. Their Costumes and Bearing.”, in The Seer; or, Common-places Refreshed. […], part I, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC, page 73, column 1:

She [the minister's wife] is warned against being drawn into excessive attachments, engrossing intimacies, low and gossiping cronyism, all intermeddling with tales and talebearers, with family breaches, with partisanship, and with ecclesiastical jurisdiction.

[1841], “a mother” [pseudonym], “Peculiar Duties of Wives in Various Stations of Life”, in The Young Wife; or, Hints to Married Daughters. […], London: The Religious Tract Society, →OCLC, page 123:

[H]e [William Jay] observed, that there were two things which caused religious servants to be too generally disliked. The first was their fondness for religious gossiping, or cronyism, which made them regardless of their time, &c.

1854, George Redford, John Angell James, “Part II. Supplement to the Autobiography of the Rev. William Jay.”, in George Redford, John Angell James, editors, The Autobiography of the Rev. William Jay; […], London: Hamilton, Adams, & Co., […], →OCLC, page 223:

Pea-green Hayne was one of my most intimate friends; we occupied rooms vis à vis, and made prison life more than endurable by affectionate cronyism.

[1860], [Renton Nicholson], chapter XVIII, in The Lord Chief Baron Nicholson. An Autobiography, London: George Vickers, […], →OCLC, page 183:

And the Englishman and Irishman went off together in a state of thorough cronyism, the former imagining that he had quite taken in his companion, and entertaining no suspicion that it was rather the other way.

1869, Mortimer Collins, “Double Entanglement”, in The Ivory Gate. […], volume I, London: Hurst and Blackett, […], →OCLC, page 222:

(archaic) The condition of being friends; friendship; also, the ability or inclination to make friends.


SIU

(law enforcement, Canada) Initialism of special investigation(s)/investigating unit.


GAL

(law) Initialism of guardian ad litem, an individual (often a lawyer) appointed to represent the best interests of a child or incapacitated person for the purpose of a legal procedure.


CER

Three principal types of emission credits may also be traded under this regime: (a) the “emission reduction unit” (ERU); (b) the “certified emission reduction” (CER); and (c) the “removal unit” (RMU). Each ERU, CER, and RMU is an entitlement to emit the equivalent of one metric ton of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. […] CERs arise from the “clean development mechanism” in Article 12 of the protocol.

2014, John G Sprankling, “Rights in Airspace and Outer Space”, in The International Law of Property, Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 174:

certified emission reduction
certified emission reduction#English

(law) Initialism of certified emission reduction.

(Michigan, law) Initialism of certified electronic recorder.


PII

public-interest immunity
w:public-interest immunity

(UK, law) Initialism of public-interest immunity.


humbug

en-noun

humbug (countable and uncountable, plural humbugs)

→ Finnish: humpuuki

→ German: Humbug

→ Hungarian: humbug (perhaps in part through German)

→ Polish: humbug (perhaps in part through German)

John Camden Hotten
Oxford English Dictionary
Piccadilly

Origin unknown; the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) states that “the facts as to its origin appear to have been lost, even before the word became common enough to excite attention”. It has been suggested that the word possibly derives from hummer (“(slang) An obvious lie”), or from hum (“(dialectal and slang) to cajole; delude; impose on”) + bug (“a goblin, a spectre”). In his Slang Dictionary (1864), English bibliophile and publisher John Camden Hotten (1832–1873) suggested a link to the name of the German city of Hamburg, “from which town so many false bulletins and reports came during the war in the last century”, or alternatively a derivation from ambage.
Hotten also said he had traced the earliest occurrence of the word to the title page of Ferdinando Killigrew’s book The Universal Jester (see quotations), which he dated to about 1735–1740. This dating has therefore been adopted by other dictionaries. However, the OED dates the word to about 1750, as the earliest edition of Killigrew’s work has been dated to 1754.

unk

unknown

"Let's talk first, Mr. Brown," Sergeant Murillo said. "Do you remember telling these officers you were going to sue them for false arrest?" / Bootsie Brown paused with the cookie halfway to his lips and said, "I mighta. It was a humbug arrest. That's why they let me and Axel outta jail in forty-eight hours. We was jist tryin' to have an Irish wake for good old Coleman."

2009, Joseph Wambaugh, Hollywood Moon: A Novel, New York, N.Y.: Little, Brown and Company, →ISBN:

I pulled the initial investigation report. I see who arrested him and I knew it was a humbug. A humbug is a bullshit arrest. No Police Officer likes to believe they exist; however sometimes it was a fact of life.

2013, Sparky McLaughlin, “‘Et Tu (Fill in Name Here) …’”, in Damned from Memory, Swedesboro, N.J.: Damned from Memory LLC, BookBaby, →ISBN:

(countable, US, crime, slang) A false arrest on trumped-up charges.


COBRA

There were COBRA forms to fill out for insurance, and unemployment to file for.

2021, Ruth Ozeki, The Book of Form and Emptiness, Canongate Books (2022), page 478:

w:Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985

(US, law) Initialism of Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985, especially the provision that allows some employees to continue their group-based health insurance after leaving a job; also, health insurance obtained under this law.


FOIA

First use appears c. 1968, in the publication Administrative Law Review.

FOIA is what enables regular people to pester powerful federal agencies into handing over information about what they’ve been up to. FOIA’s website calls it “the law that keeps citizens in the know about their government.”

2017 July 23, Michelle Cottle, “The War on the Freedom of Information Act”, in The Atlantic:

w:Freedom of Information Act (United States)

(law, US politics) Acronym of Freedom of Information Act.


FOIA

en-verb

FOIA (third-person singular simple present FOIAs, present participle FOIAing, simple past and past participle FOIAed)

FOIAs (present singular third-person)
FOIAing (participle present)
FOIAed (participle past)
FOIAed (past)

(law, transitive) To request or obtain records using the Freedom of Information Act.


meretricious

en-adj

meretricious (comparative more meretricious, superlative most meretricious)

more meretricious (comparative)
most meretricious (superlative)

/ˌmɛɹɪˈtɹɪʃəs/

/ˌmɛɹəˈtɹɪʃəs/

From Latin meretrīcius, from meretrīx (“harlot, prostitute”), from mereō (“earn, deserve, merit”) (English merit) + -trīx (“(female agent)”) (English -trix).

(law) Involving unlawful sexual connection or lack of consent by at least one party (said of a romantic relationship).


CPS

‘Itʼs entrapment,’ said Silver. ‘The CPS wonʼt prosecute.’

2020, Ben Aaronovitch, False Value, Gollancz, page 233:

Big showering of affection at beginning of relationship can be used to confuse victims and gain control, CPS warns[.]

2023 April 23, Amelia Gentleman, “CPS includes ‘love-bombing’ in guidance on abusive partners prosecution”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

Crown Prosecution Service
w:Crown Prosecution Service

(UK, law) Initialism of Crown Prosecution Service.


PT

en-noun

PT (countable and uncountable, plural PTs)


EC

European Communities
European Communities#English

(international law) Initialism of European Communities (1965-1993), a forerunner of the European Union.

European Communities

European Community
European Community#English

(international law) Initialism of European Community (1993-2009), formerly known as the EEC.


FC

FC (countable and uncountable, plural FCs)


RC

RC (countable and uncountable, plural RCs)

(law) Initialism of receiving and concealing (stolen property).


WP

(international law) Initialism of Warsaw Pact.


registrar

/ˈɹɛd͡ʒ.ɪsˌtɹɑɹ/

From Medieval Latin registrārius, from registrum (“register”) + -ārius (“agent”). See more at register.

chief executive officer
chief executive officer

An official keeper or recorder of records.

(law) The chief executive officer of a judicial forum, in charge of the entire registry of the department.


uplift

en-verb

uplift (third-person singular simple present uplifts, present participle uplifting, simple past and past participle uplifted)

uplifts (present singular third-person)
uplifting (participle present)
uplifted (participle past)
uplifted (past)

извисявам

to raise something or someone to a higher level

A man who abused a Police Community Support Officer for being transgender has received an uplifted sentence at Mold Magistrates' Court... At Court the prosecutor applied for the sentence for the public order offence to be uplifted to reflect the hate crime aspect. This resulted in the Court imposing a greater penalty.

2020 January 29, “Transphobic hate crime results in increased sentence for Mold teenager”, in Crown Prosecution Service, London: Crown Prosecution Service, retrieved 2020-01-30:

(law, of a penalty) To aggravate; to increase.

(law, Australia, transitive) To remove (a document) from its current possessor and take it into one's own possession.


uplift

en-noun

uplift (countable and uncountable, plural uplifts)

The CMA fined the companies involved £3.4 million, which included uplifts for director level involvement.

2020, David Begg, Economics for Business, page 148:

(law) An increase in a fine or penalty due to aggravating circumstances.


defender

From Middle English defender, deffender, defendere, defendour, defendoure, partly from Anglo-Norman defendour, from Old French defendëor; partly from Middle English defenden + -ere, equivalent to defend + -er.

There was another protection to which she was intitled by that law, namely, a defender; but she had none.

1822, Thomas Bayly Howell, A Complete Collection of State Trials and Proceedings for High Treason and Other Crimes and Misdemeanors from the Earliest Period to the Year 1783, page 729:

So, what is contemplated under this model is that the defender would work with civil legal services lawyers to address the clients' needs.

2007, Barry Krisberg, Susan Marchionna, Christopher Baird, Continuing the Struggle for Justice, →ISBN, page 248:

It puts you at the head of the table, at a right angle to the witness; the court reporter sits to your right, and the defender sits on the witness's far side.

2010, Henry L. Hecht, Effective Depositions, →ISBN, page 243:

(law, rare) A lawyer who represents defendants, especially a public defender; a defense attorney (US) or defence counsel (UK).

(Scots law) A defendant in a civil action.


descend

en-verb

descend (third-person singular simple present descends, present participle descending, simple past and past participle descended)

descends (present singular third-person)
descending (participle present)
descended (participle past)
descended (past)
descend (infinitive)

PIE word
 *de
The verb is derived from Middle English descenden (“to move downwards, fall, descend; to slope downwards; to go from a better to a worse condition, decline, degenerate; to be a descendant, derive from (a source); etc.”), from Anglo-Norman descendere, descendre, and Old French descendere, descendre (“to move downwards, fall, descend; to slope downwards; to be a descendant, derive from (a source); etc.”) (modern French descendre), and from their etymon Latin dēscendere, the present active infinitive of dēscendō (“to come or go down, fall, descend; to slope downwards; to be a descendant; etc.”), from de- (prefix meaning ‘from; down from’) + scandō (“to ascend, climb; to clamber”) (from Proto-Indo-European *skend- (“to climb, scale; to dart; to jump”)).
The noun is derived from the verb.

laskea

to pass from a higher to a lower part of (something)

afgaan

to physically move or pass from a higher to a lower place or position

The crown descends to the heir of the previous monarch.

[I]f the Tenant giue a part of the Tenancie to the father of the Lord in Taile, the father dieth, and this deſcends to the Lord, in this caſe by Act in Law the Seigniorie is ſuſpended in part and in eſſe for part, and the ſame Law is of a Rent charge.

1628, Edw[ard] Coke, “Of Rents”, in The First Part of the Institutes of the Lawes of England. […], London: […] [Adam Islip] for the Societe of Stationers, →OCLC, book 2, section 222, folio 148, verso:

As to eleemoſynary corporations, by the dotation the founder and his heirs are of common right the legal viſitors, to ſee that that property is rightly employed, vvhich vvould otherwiſe have deſcended to the viſitor himſelf: […]

1765, William Blackstone, “Of Corporations”, in Commentaries on the Laws of England, book I (Of the Rights of Persons), Oxford, Oxfordshire: […] Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 469:

The possession of the sacred fire and of the ancestral sticks, carrying with it both political authority and priestly dignity, descends in the male line, and hence generally passes from father to son.

1911, J[ames] G[eorge] Frazer, “The Fire-drill”, in The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion, 3rd edition, part I (The Magic Art and the Evolution of Kings, volume II), London: Macmillan and Co., […], →OCLC, page 217:

Senses relating to passing down from a source to another thing.

(intransitive, chiefly law) Of property, a right, etc.: to pass down to a generation, a person, etc., by inheritance.

periytyä

of property, a right, etc.: to pass down to a generation, a person, etc., by inheritance


residue

en-noun

residue (countable and uncountable, plural residues)

From Middle English residue, from Old French residu, from Latin residuum, neuter of residuus (“remaining”), from resideō (“I remain behind”).

(law) Whatever property or effects are left in an estate after payment of all debts, other charges and deduction of what is specifically bequeathed by the testator.

kuolinpesän jakamaton nettovarallisuus

(law) property or effects remaining in an estate after deduction of debts, charges and bequests


EPA

Coordinate term: LPA

enduring power of attorney
enduring power of attorney#English

(countable, law, England and Wales) Initialism of enduring power of attorney.


tacking

tacking (countable and uncountable, plural tackings)

The English doctrine of tacking was first solemnly established in Marsh v . Lee , under the assistance of Sir Matthew Hale , who compared the operation to a plank in shipwreck gained by the last mortgagee

1826, James Kent, Commentaries on American Law:

(law) A union of securities given at different times, all of which must be redeemed before an intermediate purchaser can interpose a claim.

(law) The joining together of consecutive periods of possession of property, especially between squatters in cases of adverse possession.


MQSA

(US, law) Initialism of Mammography Quality Standards Act.


FAA

Federal Arbitration Act
w:Federal Arbitration Act

(law) Initialism of Federal Arbitration Act (9 USC 1).


ex post facto

From Latin ex (“from”) + post (“after”) + facto, ablative of factum (“deed”). In Latin, ex takes the ablative case, while post takes the accusative case. (See Wikipedia for a discussion of the grammatical form and usage of this phrase.)

Coupled with the Constitution's proscription of ex post facto laws is a similar prohibition against bills of attainder.

1998, Daniel E. Troy, Retroactive Legislation, page 56:

That the tax would take effect after some of the payments were made also raises issues. Says former Attorney General Richard Thornburg, also in an e-mail: "Such legislation could well run afoul of constitutional restrictions on bills of attainder, ex post facto laws, laws impairing the obligations of contract, unauthorized takings of property and the like."

2009 March 21, Jim McTague, “Would a Tax on Bonuses Be Constitutional?”, in Barron's:

(law) Formulated or enacted after some event, and then retroactively applied to it.

taannehtiva

formulated or enacted after some event, then retroactively applied to it


ex post facto

What he did was not a crime when he did it, but he was convicted ex post facto.

(law) By retroactive application of a law formulated or enacted after the deed in question.


HRT

HRT (countable and uncountable, plural HRTs)

(law enforcement) Initialism of hostage rescue team.


AHA

AHA (countable and uncountable, plural AHAs)

Agricultural Holdings Act tenancy#English

(countable, property law, England and Wales) Initialism of Agricultural Holdings Act tenancy.


AHA

Agricultural Holdings Act
w:Agricultural Holdings Act

(countable, property law, England and Wales) Initialism of Agricultural Holdings Act.


bailiff

From Middle English baillif, baylyf, from Anglo-Norman and Old French bailif (plural bailis), probably from Vulgar Latin *bāiulivus (“castellan”), from Latin bāiulus (“porter; steward”), whence also bail. As a translation of foreign titles, semantic loan from French bailli, Scots bailie, Dutch baljuw, etc. Mostly replaced the role of native reeve. Doublet of bailo.

Bailiffs of Jersey and Guernsey
High Bailiff of the Isle of Man
Landvogt
bailiff

مَأْمُور

equivalent officers of the court in foreign contexts

(law enforcement) An officer of the court, particularly:

(historical, Norman term) A reeve, (specifically) the chief officer executing the decisions of any English court in the period following the Norman Conquest or executing the decisions of lower courts in the late medieval and early modern period.

(UK) A high bailiff: an officer of the county courts responsible for executing warrants and court orders, appointed by the judge and removable by the Lord Chancellor.

(UK) A bound bailiff: a deputy bailiff charged with debt collection.

(US) Any law enforcement officer charged with courtroom security and order.

teremőr

a law enforcement officer charged with courtroom security and order

process server

in role of serving processes and summonses

A huissier de justice or other foreign officer of the court acting as either a process server or as courtroom security.


ACC

assistant chief constable
assistant chief constable#English

(law enforcement) Initialism of assistant chief constable, a police rank used in Commonwealth countries.


detective

→ Catalan: detectiu

→ Dutch: detective

→ French: détective

→ German: Detektiv

→ Greek: ντετέκτιβ (ntetéktiv)

→ Norwegian Bokmål: detektiv

→ Norwegian Nynorsk: detektiv

→ Portuguese: detetive

→ Spanish: detective

→ Swedish: detektiv

The detective kept them in view. He made his way casually along the inside of the shelter until he reached an open scuttle close to where the two men were standing talking. Eavesdropping was not a thing Larard would have practised from choice, but there were times when, in the public interest, he had to do it, and this was one of them.

1928, Lawrence R. Bourne, chapter 7, in Well Tackled!:

(law enforcement) A police officer tasked with collecting evidence and information in order to solve a crime; an investigator.


CPR

Civil Procedure Rules
w:Civil Procedure Rules

(law, England and Wales) Initialism of Civil Procedure Rules.


JAG

(law, military) Acronym of judge advocate general.


ATF

(US, law enforcement) Initialism of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. (the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives)


ICT

ICT (countable and uncountable, plural ICTs)

(law) Initialism of International Crimes Tribunal.


factum

(law, civil law) Anything stated and made certain.

Somebody's own act and deed.
Anything stated and made certain.

(law) The due execution of a will, including everything necessary to its validity.

But according to a factum filed by Crown prosecutors, Shaikh's status was "confidential informer," therefore RCMP did not direct him about what to do at the camp.

2009 January 31, Isabel Teotonio, “Police mole trapped teen, court told”, in Toronto Star:

(law, Canada) A statement of fact and law delivered before a court.

Fraud in the factum


CSI

(India) Initialism of Computer Society of India.


MSA

MSA (countable and uncountable, plural MSAs)

(law) Initialism of master service agreement.


CFR

Code of Federal Regulations
w:en:Code of Federal Regulations

(US, law) Initialism of Code of Federal Regulations.


PL

The government's primary market promotion tool is Public Law 480, the Food for Peace program. Since its inception in 1954, PL 480 has provided an outlet in less-developed countries for American agricultural surpluses.

1982, Richard Gilmore, A Poor Harvest: The Clash of Policies and Interests in the Grain Trade, page 21:

(US, law, government) Initialism of public law.


STA

(law, US) Initialism of special temporary authority (to operate a radio station in the US)


CR

CR (countable and uncountable, plural CRs)

Most continuing resolutions are temporary measures that expire on the date specified in the CR, or are superseded by enactment of the regular appropriations act.

2004, Allen Schick, The Federal Budget: Politics, Policy, Process, →ISBN, page 228:

A few days later in a meeting with the president, Clinton asked Gingrich for a continuing resolution (CR) to continue funding the government until they could work out a compromise. “If I go back and try to get a longterm CR without a budget from you, the next time you'll be dealing with Speaker Armey," he said.

2008, Steven M. Gillon, The Pact: Bill Clinton, Newt Gingrich, and the Rivalry that Defined a Generation, →ISBN:

CRs are a common occurrence because it is highly unusual for Congress and the president to pass all 13 appropriations bills by the start of the new fiscal year.

2014, Robert E. Dewhirst, John David Rausch, Encyclopedia of the United States Congress, →ISBN, page 149:

continuing resolution
continuing resolution#English

(US politics, law) Initialism of continuing resolution.


living will

(law) A document, made by a person when still legally fit to do so, which provides clear instructions or principles to be employed by a surrogate decision-maker, such as expressing a desire to be allowed to die instead of being kept alive by artificial means, in the event of being severely disabled or suffering from a terminal illness.

levenstestament

document giving durable power of attorney to a surrogate decision-maker for healthcare purposes


PBT

PBT (countable and uncountable, plural PBTs)

(law enforcement, countable) Initialism of preliminary breath test.


PACE

Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984
w:Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984

(UK, law) Acronym of Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984.


CAS

Court of Arbitration for Sport
w:Court of Arbitration for Sport

(law, sports) Initialism of Court of Arbitration for Sport.


Gen.

(law) Abbreviation of general (business or agency description).


DNC

(US, law, historical) Initialism of District of North Carolina, a former United States federal court.


ATP

(transport, international law) The Agreement on the International Carriage of Perishable Foodstuffs and on the Special Equipment to be used for such Carriage (ATP).


ATP

ATP (countable and uncountable, plural ATPs)

Mr Sumption said: "The object would be to enable the Secretary of State to reconsider the decision, not simply so as to consider the reduction in the scope of the extradition proceedings which arises from the decision of the House of Lords, but to consider whether, in the light of that reduction, it would be right to issue an ATP (authorisation to proceed) at all."

1999 March 29, “Pinochet lawyers to challenge extradition ruling”, in The Guardian:

(law, project management) Initialism of authorization to proceed.


CBA

(law) Initialism of County Bar Association.


tried

en-adj

tried (comparative more tried, superlative most tried)

more tried (comparative)
most tried (superlative)

From Middle English tried, tryed, equivalent to try + -ed.

(law) Put on trial, taken before a lawcourt.


tax avoidance

Tax avoidance is a costly business to the US economy. Some of the country's best minds in the legal and accounting professions work around the clock searching for loopholes in the tax regulations.

1995, Robert Ernest Hall, Alvin Rabushka., The Flat Tax, page 26:

Many mistakes are common in creating and administering a Family Limited Partnership, and these errors can reduce or eliminate its value as a tax avoidance tool.

2008, Aaron Larson, Wills and Trusts Kit For Dummies, page 85:

Tax planning uses tax avoidance methods.

2009, Kevin Murphy, Mark Higgins, Concepts in Federal Taxation 2010, With Taxcut Tax Preparation Software, page 32:

The legal exploitation of tax rules to minimize tax payments.


NPS

en-noun

NPS (countable and uncountable, plural NPSs)

new psychoactive substance
new psychoactive substance#English

(law) Initialism of new psychoactive substance.


JIT

joint investigation team
joint investigation team#English

(law) Initialism of joint investigation team.


tax evasion

(taxation, criminology) The illegal avoidance of paying tax, especially by making a false declaration of income etc.


escheat

escheat (countable and uncountable, plural escheats)

From Middle English eschete, from Anglo-Norman escheat, Old French eschet, escheit, escheoit (“that which falls to one”), from the past participle of escheoir (“to fall”), from Vulgar Latin *excadēre, from Latin ex + cadere (“fall”).

(law) The return of property of a deceased person to the state (originally to a feudal lord) where there are no legal heirs or claimants.

Approching, with bold words and bitter threat, / Bad that same boaster, as he mote, on high / To leaue to him that Lady for excheat, / Or bide him battell without further treat.

1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book III, Canto VIII”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC:


APB

all-points bulletin
all-points bulletin#English

(law enforcement) Initialism of all-points bulletin.


tax haven

Such colonies claim to be "more British than the British", except that they pay no UK tax and act as tax havens for funds from Britain. Gibraltar has made a particular specialism of internet gambling.

2013 August 14, Simon Jenkins, “Gibraltar and the Falklands deny the logic of history”, in The Guardian:

(law, business, taxation) A jurisdiction that levies low tax rates on certain economic activities, especially to attract wealthy individuals and foreign businesses.

belastingparadys

country that levies low taxes on foreign businesses


lawmaker

From Middle English lawemaker, lawe maker, equivalent to law + maker.

Lawmakers in France voted over the weekend of April 10/11 to introduce measures to restrict flights on routes where the same journey can be made by rail in under two and a half hours.

2021 April 21, “French to favour rail over short-haul flights”, in RAIL, number 929, page 11:


reporter

→ Catalan: repòrter

→ Greek: ρεπόρτερ (repórter)

non-rhotic, without the horse–hoarse merger

From Middle English reportour, from Old French reporteur; equivalent to report + -er.

(law) A case reporter; a bound volume of printed legal opinions from a particular jurisdiction.


syndicate

From French syndicat (“office of a syndic; board of syndics; trade union”), from syndic (“syndic; representative; chief magistrate of Geneva”) + -at (suffix denoting an action or result of an action), from Medieval Latin *syndicātus, from syndicus (“representative of a corporation or town; syndic”) (from Ancient Greek σύνδικος (súndikos, “advocate for a defendant”), from σύν (sún, “beside; with”) + δίκη (díkē, “judgment; justice”)) + -ātus (suffix forming adjectives from nouns indicating the possession of a thing or a quality).
Compare Italian sindacato (“syndicate; trade union; audit, control, supervision”), Occitan sendegat, Portuguese sindicato (“trade union”), Spanish sindicado, sindicato (“office of a syndic; syndicate; trade union”).

cog

Held at the estate of Mafia boss Joseph Barbara in Apalachin, NY, the meeting called by [Vito] Genovese in November 1957 brought over 100 mobsters from around the country to cement his power over the national crime syndicate.

1999, John Madinger, “Case Development”, in Confidential Informant: Law Enforcement’s Most Valuable Tool, Boca Raton, Fla.: CRC Press, →ISBN, page 178:

A group of individuals or companies formed to transact some specific business, or to promote a common interest; a self-coordinating group.

(crime) A group of gangsters engaged in organized crime.


w/h

(US, taxation) Abbreviation of withholding.


soc

From Middle English soke, sok, soc, from Old English sōcn. More at soke.

As proprietors of the soc, the lords claimed a great number of fees and perquisites, payable by all classes of people, whether free or servile, who negotiated any affairs within the soc, and which no doubt formed in themselves a considerable source of revenue.

1869, George Norton, Commentaries on the History, Constitution, and Chartered Franchises of the City of London, page 96:

Doubts have recently been cast upon Maitland's view that the Anglo-Saxon "sac and soc" included the right to hold a petty court, to compel tenants to attend it, and to take profits from it.

2001, Theodore Frank Thomas Plucknett, A Concise History of the Common Law, page 96:

(UK, law, historical) The lord's power or privilege of holding a court in a district, as in manor or lordship; jurisdiction of causes, and the limits of that jurisdiction.


taxpayer

The bank was bailed out by the taxpayer.

1945: I got into the bus full of taxpayers who were giving some money to a taxpayer who had on his taxpayer's stomach a little box which allowed the other taxpayers to continue their taxpayers' journeys. I noticed in this bus a taxpayer with a long taxpayer's neck and whose taxpayer's head bore a taxpayer's felt hat encircled by a plait the like of which no taxpayer ever wore before. Suddenly the said taxpayer peremptorily addressed a nearby taxpayer, complaining bitterly that he was purposely treading on his taxpayer's toes every time other taxpayers got on or off the taxpayers' bus. Then the angry taxpayer went and sat down in a seat for taxpayers which another taxpayer had just vacated. — Raymond Queneau, 'from Polyptotes' in Exercises in Style, 1945 (Eng. 1958)

The late Professor Pat White was an outspoken critic. In his 1986 book Forgotten Railways, he dismissed as smoke and mirrors the oft-used argument that 33% of rail routes carried only 1% of the traffic, as it ignores the fact that a third of the national road network also only carried 2% of cars and lorries. But unlike rail, road got away with it because no mention was made of how much it cost the taxpayer to keep them usable.

2023 March 8, Howard Johnston, “Was Marples the real railway wrecker?”, in RAIL, number 978, page 53:

A person who is subject to, liable for, or pays tax as opposed to a nontaxpayer who is neither the subject nor the object of revenue laws.

អ្នកជាប់ពន្ធ

nĕək cŏəp pŭən


DMCA

Digital Millennium Copyright Act
w:Digital Millennium Copyright Act

(US law) Initialism of Digital Millennium Copyright Act.


IST

(law) Initialism of incompetent to stand trial.


acquest

en-noun

acquest (countable and uncountable, plural acquests)

From Middle English aqueste (later conflating with enqueste), from Old French aquest, (French acquêt), from Vulgar Latin *acquaesitum, ultimately from Latin quaerere (“seek”). Doublet of acquis.

(law) Property acquired by purchase, gift, or otherwise than by inheritance.


misper

Portmanteau of missing + person
Shortening of missing person as in “missing persons report”.

‘I had my researchers check the files on all the mispers and cold cases five years either side of that date estimate, on females of that approximate age. This is what they found. Fill your boots.’ He took a large gulp of his drink. / ‘I’m impressed, you've been moving fast.’ / ‘On it like a car bonnet, mate.’

2015, Peter James, You Are Dead, New York, N.Y.: Minotaur Books, →ISBN:

(law enforcement, slang) A missing person.


tariff

From French tarif, from Italian tariffa, from Ottoman Turkish تعرفه (ta'rife), from Persian تعرفه (ta'refe), from Arabic تَعْرِفَة (taʕrifa, “tariff, rate”), from the root ع ر ف (ʕ-r-f).

der

A system of government-imposed duties levied on imported or exported goods; a list of such duties, or the duties themselves.

There is a tariff in every carriage, and most of them also have taxometers.

1906, Department of Commerce and Labor. Bureau of Manufactures, Monthly Consular and Trade Reports (number 313, page 75)

(British) A sentence determined according to a scale of standard penalties for certain categories of crime.


tariff

en-verb

tariff (third-person singular simple present tariffs, present participle tariffing, simple past and past participle tariffed)

tariffs (present singular third-person)
tariffing (participle present)
tariffed (participle past)
tariffed (past)

(transitive) to levy a duty on (something)


AST

en-noun

AST (countable and uncountable, plural ASTs)

assured shorthold tenancy
w:assured shorthold tenancy

(property law, real estate, England and Wales) Initialism of assured shorthold tenancy.


precept

Borrowed from Late Latin praeceptum, form of praecipiō (“to teach”), from Latin prae (“pre-”) + capiō (“take”).

(law) A written command, especially a demand for payment.


FBT

FBT (countable and uncountable, plural FBTs)

farm business tenancy
farm business tenancy#English

(countable, property law, England and Wales) Initialism of farm business tenancy.


FQPA

(US, law) Initialism of Food Quality Protection Act.


disclaimer

Partly from Middle English discleymer, from Anglo-Norman desclamer; and partly from disclaim + -er.

(law) A denial, disavowal, or renunciation, as of a title, claim, interest, estate, or trust; relinquishment or waiver of an interest or estate.

farağatnamə

law: denial, disavowal, or renunciation (as of a title, claim, interest, estate, or trust; relinquishment or waiver of an interest or estate)


inter alia

Minority rights and their content can furthermore be clarified by indicating their place among the two pillars of a system of minority protection sensu lato, namely the prohibition of discrimination (inter alia in combination with the individual human rights) on the one hand and minority protection sensu stricto (implying 'special' measures for (members of) minorities) on the other hand.

2000, Kristin Henrard, Devising an Adequate System of Minority Protection: Individual Human Rights, Minority Rights and the Right to Self-Determination, Kluwer Law International, page 159:

Ecma’s standards include, inter alia, safety specifications, specifications for environmental product attributes, specifications for data communications such as IT security, specifications for system interconnection, as well as specifications for multimedia such as universal 3D (Ecma 2007d).

2009, Eliza Varney, “Ecma International”, in Christian Tietje, Alan Brouder, editors, Handbook of Transnational Economic Governance Regimes, Leiden: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, →ISBN, part C (Communications, Electronics, and Media), section VI (The Role of Ecma in Transnational Economic Governance), page 556:


IPC

(India, criminal law) Initialism of Indian Penal Code, the former official criminal code of India.


arguendo

1978, Matter of Green, 586 F. 2d 1247 - U.S. Court of Appeals, 8th Circuit
Assuming arguendo that those assertions are factually true, we find respondent's claim to be without legal merit.

Grant me, arguendo, that sort of scenario, with the Soviet federation rebuilding and small wars raging here and there, as the world of the millennium.

1990 February 5, William Safire, “Staying a Superpower”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:

(law) for the sake of argument; assuming without deciding; identifying the premises of a hypothetical argument while making it clear that no finding is being made on whether the premises are true.

(law) Used to set off the facts presented in an argument on a point of law from facts in dispute in the case.


reversible

/ɹəˈvɜː(ɹ)sɪbəl/

Probably from Middle French, equivalent to reverse + -ible.

(law) Providing sufficient reason for a court decision to be overturned on appeal.


tenement

From Middle English tenement, from Anglo-Norman tenement (“holding”), from Old French tenement, from Medieval Latin tenimentum, from Latin teneō (“hold”).

The island of Brecqhou is a tenement of Sark.

(law) Any form of property that is held by one person from another, rather than being owned.

verpachting

any form of property that is held by one person from another, rather than being owned


appurtenance

From Middle English appurtenaunce, from Anglo-Norman apurtenance and Old French apartenance, from apartenir, from Latin appertineō (“I belong, I appertain”). Equivalent to appertain + -ance. More at appertain.

der

It is well settled that a water right may pass with land as an appurtenance thereto, or as a parcel thereof.

1908, Samuel Charles Wiel, Water Rights in the Western States, page 340:

Also I will that anon after the said nine years after my decease determined that my said feoffees make estate of all the said manors, lands and tenements with the appurtenance to my next heir and to the heirs of his body lawfully begotten.

2019, Michèle Schindler, Lovell our Dogge:

(law) A subordinate interest in land which benefits a principal estate, which cannot be detached from or held separately to that estate; an appurtenant interest.

Zubehör

(law) minor property that passes with the main property


alimony

en-noun

alimony (countable and uncountable, plural alimonies)

→ Welsh: alimoni

Known since the 17th century, from Latin alimōnia (“food, support, nourishment, sustenance”) (English aliment, as in alimentary), itself from alō (“to nourish”) + -mōnia (“action, state, condition”).

der

Who won, huh? Nobody. Used to be sex was the only free thing, No longer. Alimony… palimony… it's all financial. Love is an illusion.

1985, Joel Schumacher, Carl Kurlander, St. Elmo's Fire (motion picture), spoken by Kevin Dolenz (Andrew McCarthy):

(law, sometimes derogatory) A court-mandated allowance made to a former spouse by a divorced or legally separated person.


on the bench

(law, of a judge) Presiding over a court.


aspirational

en-adj

aspirational (comparative more aspirational, superlative most aspirational)

more aspirational (comparative)
most aspirational (superlative)

/ˌæspəˈɹeɪʃənəl/

(law) Expressing a hope or intention but not creating a legally binding obligation.


proceeding

/pɹəˈsiːdɪŋ/

December 7 2016, Kelly Phillips Erb writing in Forbes, House Says No To Renewed Efforts To Impeach IRS Commissioner
Since impeachment is a legal proceeding, while anyone can make a motion to start the process, the Judiciary Committee determines whether there are sufficient grounds for impeachment.

(law) Any legal action, especially one that is not a lawsuit.


warranty

en-noun

warranty (countable and uncountable, plural warranties)

From Middle English warantye, warantie, from Anglo-Norman warrantie, an Old Northern French variant of Old French guarantie (Modern French garantie). Doublet of guarantee and guaranty. More at warrant.

covenant of warranty
covenant of warranty

(countable, law, real estate, obsolete) A legal agreement that was a real covenant and ran with the land: The grantor of a piece of real estate held in freehold, and his heirs, were required to officially guarantee their claim and plead their case for the title. If evicted by someone with a superior claim (paramount title), they were also required to hand over other real estate of equal value in recompense. It has now been replaced by personal covenants and the covenant of warranty.

(law, countable, real estate) A covenant, also called the covenant of warranty, whereby the grantor assures the grantee that he or she will not be subject to the claims of someone with a paramount title, thereby guaranteeing the status of the title that is being conveyed.

(countable, law) A legal agreement, either written or oral (an expressed warranty) or implied through the actions of the buyer and seller (an implied warranty), which states that the goods or property in question will be in exactly the same state as promised, such as in a sale of an item or piece of real estate.

garanci

legal: an agreement which states that the goods or property in question will be in exactly the same state as promised


suicide bomber

One who carries explosives on his or her body or in a vehicle and intends to detonate them (dying in the process) to kill people and inflict widespread damage, usually motivated by a political or religious cause.

камика́дзе m (kamikádze, literally “kamikaze”)


intellectual property

intellectual property (usually uncountable, plural intellectual properties)

According to this saga of intellectual-property misanthropy, these creatures [patent trolls] roam the business world, buying up patents and then using them to demand extravagant payouts from companies they accuse of infringing them. Often, their victims pay up rather than face the costs of a legal battle.

2013 June 8, “Obama goes troll-hunting”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8839, page 55:

The ability to shift profits to low-tax countries by locating intellectual property in them, which is then licensed to related businesses in high-tax countries, is often assumed to be the preserve of high-tech companies. […] current tax rules make it easy for all sorts of firms to generate […] “stateless income”: profit subject to tax in a jurisdiction that is neither the location of the factors of production that generate the income nor where the parent firm is domiciled.

2013 June 22, “T time”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8841, page 68:

(uncountable) Any product of someone's intellect that has commercial value: a piece of literature, a painting, an invention, a trademark, a trade secret, etc. Works protected under intellectual property law, and accorded intellectual property rights such as copyrights and patents.

One area of current change concerns intellectual properties and intellectual property rights.
"Intellectual Property Rights in Agriculture"

For technology companies, a well-constructed system for managing intellectual properties is fundamental to being able to extract full value from the properties
"Profiting from Intellectual Capital: Extracting Value from Innovation" By Patrick H. Sullivan

(countable) Any individual work that is protected under intellectual property law.


trooper

From troop + -er, from French troupe. The sense of “one who endures adversity” comes from trouper (“member of an acting troupe”) but through assimilation with the sense of “soldier” has come to be usually spelled “trooper”.

(US, law enforcement) Ellipsis of state trooper.

(Australia, law enforcement) A mounted policeman.


purview

From Middle English purveu (“proviso”), from Anglo-Norman purveu est (“it is provided”), or purveu que (“provided that”) (statutory language), from Old French porveü (“provided”), past participle of porveoir (“to provide”), from Latin prōvideō (see provide). Influenced by view and its etymological antecedents.


floater

From float + -er (suffix forming agent nouns).

paikanvaihtaja

person without a fixed or lasting affiliation, position, or role

kelluva esine

thing which physically floats in a gas or liquid

leijuri

A dock worker saw him floating against a dock pier and called the police. Condition of the body they thought a floater that had been hit by a boat and cut by the prop.

2017 September 18, E. J. Stauffer, chapter 3, in The Drowning, Bloomington, Ind.: Archway Publishing, →ISBN:

A person who physically floats in a gas or liquid.

(law enforcement, slang) A corpse floating in a body of water.

["]Suppose I should tell you that there's a permanent order in the sheriff's office, left there by the old sheriff, that if I ever use your name or admit I'm your wife I'll get a floater out of the county and out of the state. Does that tempt you?" / "Tempt me to do what?" / "To get me floated and take all the money."

1952 September 19, John Steinbeck, chapter 31, in East of Eden, New York, N.Y.: The Viking Press, →OCLC, book 3, section 1, page 383:

(figurative) A thing which moves from place to place, as if floating.

(US, law) A criminal sentence which is suspended so long as the convicted person leaves an area.


extort

en-verb

extort (third-person singular simple present extorts, present participle extorting, simple past and past participle extorted)

extorts (present singular third-person)
extorting (participle present)
extorted (participle past)
extorted (past)

Borrowed from Latin extortus, past participle of extorquere (“to twist or wrench out, to extort”); from ex (“out”) + -tort, from torqueō (“twist, turn”).

Weirdly, Renton doesn’t look too much older and the same also goes for Sick Boy (Jonny Lee Miller), who has exchanged heroin for cocaine and nowadays runs an escort-and-blackmail business, secretly videoing clients and extorting money, working with his female business partner, Veronika (Anjela Nedyalkova).

2017 January 19, Peter Bradshaw, “T2 Trainspotting review – choose a sequel that doesn't disappoint”, in the Guardian:

(transitive, law) To obtain by means of the offense of extortion.

勒索

to obtain by means of the offense of extortion


B&E

breaking and entering
breaking and entering#English

Initialism of breaking and entering; burglary in general.


strike out

strike out (third-person singular simple present strikes out, present participle striking out, simple past struck out, past participle struck out or (somewhat archaic) stricken out)

strikes out (present singular third-person)
striking out (participle present)
struck out (past)
struck out (participle past)
stricken out (archaic participle past)

A Suit filed by respondent Establissment Sima of Vaduz was on the 2nd day of March, 1988 struck out by the Federal High Court. An application under Order 9 rule 6 Federal High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules was argued before that court on 17th day of October, 1988 for relisting the suit. Even though the present appellant as respondent to that motion opposed, the prayer was granted.

1990 December 14, Supreme Court of Nigeria, Nigeria National Supply Co. Ltd v Establissment Sima of Vaduz, number SC 137/1989:

The Government requested that the applications be partly struck out of the list of cases in accordance with Article 37 § 1 (c) of the Convention, challenging the right of the heirs of the four applicants who had died in the course of the proceedings (Mr Hristozov, Mr Petrov, Ms Pencheva and Mr Behar, see paragraph 4 above) to pursue the applications in their stead. In their view, those heirs could not claim to be indirect victims, and did not have a valid interest in obtaining a ruling by the Court, because the alleged breaches of Articles 2, 3 and 8 of the Convention did not affect them, for two reasons. First, the authorities’ refusal to allow the applicants access to the unauthorised medicinal product that they wished to have administered did not affect other individuals, such as their heirs. Secondly, the rights invoked by the applicants were deeply personal in nature. Moreover, it was not the Court’s task to determine in the abstract whether the relevant domestic law provisions were in line with the Convention.

2012 November 13, European Court of Human Rights, Hristozov and others v. Bulgaria, number 47039/11, marginal 68:

In 2016 36,579 applications were declared inadmissible or struck out of the list of cases by a Single Judge, a Committee or a Chamber, a 15% decrease compared with 2015 (43,133). The Single-Judge formation decided 30,998 cases in 2016, a decrease of 15% compared with 2015 (36,308). 3,772 applications were struck out by a Chamber or a Committee, in a decision or a judgment, following a friendly settlement or a unilateral declaration, a decrease of 18% (4,628 in 2015). Friendly settlements (2,005) increased by 21% (1,658 in 2015) and unilateral declarations decreased by 41% (1,767 compared to 2,970 in 2015). The remainder of the applications were declared inadmissible by a Chamber or a Committee or struck out by these formations on other grounds.

2016, European Court of Human Rights, Analysis of statistics 2016, page 4:

(law, figurative) to treat something as settled


Named after section 187 of the California Penal Code, which defines the offense of murder.

A code one-eight-seven on Jefferson one-four-eight-nine. Corner store—7-Eleven." A 187 was a homicide, Jefferson, the other side of town. ...

1992, Ian Slater, WW III: Warshot, page 148:

[…] and Snoop Dogg blatantly rapped about doing "187 on an undercover cop" on [….]

2003, Mark Anthony Neal, Songs in the Key of Black Life: A Rhythm and Blues Nation, page 164:

Paco came across a wall that, in the large block letters of local Hispanic gang graffiti, spelled out “187 Domingo.” This was the ultimate threat for Paco [….]

2004, Malcolm W. Klein, Gang Cop: The Words and Ways of Officer Paco Domingo, page 131:

Perp at this address is a possible One-eight-seven P. Request a unit respond Code Three." The RTO came back immediately and put out the call division-wide.

2004, Stephen J. Cannell, Vertical Coffin, page 256:

Respond to a one-eight-seven at nine-eight-six Cove Road North," the dispatcher continued in her heavy southern drawl. "10-4... En route.[….]

2004, Cash Pawley, Pray for Death, page 21:

(US) Police code for murder, in the State of California.


vig

en-noun

vig (countable and uncountable, plural vigs)

Clipping of vigorish, from Yiddish וויגריש (vigrish), from Russian вы́игрыш (výigryš, “winnings”).

1973, Martin Scorsese, Mardik Martin (screenplay), Mean Streets, quoted in 2009, Ellis Cashmore, Martin Scorsese's America, page 118,
“You charged a guy from the neighborhood $1800 vig?” he asks incredulously (“vig” is short for vigorish, meaning a rate of interest from a loan from an illegal moneylender).

The guy was probably professional muscle, a leg breaker who collects vig for a loan shark. (Vig is a mob term for interest on loans to a loan shark.)

2005, F. P. Lione, The Crossroads (Midtown Blue Book; 2), page 100:

"Look, I know I owe you and I know I'm late but I'm good for it. I am. In fact I'll pay you triple what I owe. Triple! Plus the missing vigs, but I need some help first."

2009, Davinia Bostick, The Match, →ISBN, page 91:

(US slang, crime) Synonym of vigorish (“interest from a loan, as from a loan shark”)


IAD

(law enforcement) internal affairs department


bloodthirsty

en-adj

bloodthirsty (comparative bloodthirstier or more bloodthirsty, superlative bloodthirstiest or most bloodthirsty)

bloodthirstier (comparative)
more bloodthirsty (comparative)
bloodthirstiest (superlative)
most bloodthirsty (superlative)

From blood + thirsty. Cognate with West Frisian bloeddorstich (“bloodthirsty”), Dutch bloeddorstig (“bloodthirsty”), German blutdürstig (“bloodthirsty”), Danish blodtørstig (“bloodthirsty”), Swedish blodtörstig (“bloodthristy”), Norwegian blodtørstig (“bloodthirsty”).

cog

[I]t is, as I may ſo ſay, a ſavvcy Plot: and vve all knovv, moſt Reverend Fathers, that vvhat is ſavvce for a Gooſe is ſavvce for a Gander: Therefore, I ſay, as thoſe bloud-thirſty Ganders of the conſpiracy vvould have deſtroyed us Geeſe of the Senate, let us make haſte to deſtroy them, ſo I humbly move for hanging— […]

1682, Thomas Otway, Venice Preserv’d, or, A Plot Discover’d. A Tragedy. […], London: […] Jos[eph] Hindmarsh […], →OCLC, Act V, scene [ii], page 61:

[…] Diodorus also relates of Caligula, predecessor to Nero, that his nurse used to moisten the nipples of her breast frequently with blood to make Caligula take the better hold of them; which, says Diodorus, was the cause that made him so blood-thirsty and cruel all his life-time after, that he not only committed frequent murder by his own hand, but likewise wished that all human kind wore but one neck that he might have the pleasure to cut it off.

1711 December 23 (Gregorian calendar), [Joseph Addison; Richard Steele et al.], “WEDNESDAY, December 12, 1711”, in The Spectator, number 246; republished in Alexander Chalmers, editor, The Spectator; a New Edition, […], volume III, New York, N.Y.: D[aniel] Appleton & Company, 1853, →OCLC, page 229:

The Lord Mayor, in the stronghold of the mighty Mansion House, gave orders to his fifty cooks and butlers to keep Christmas as a Lord Mayor's household should; and even the little tailor, whom he had fined five shillings on the previous Monday for being drunk and blood-thirsty in the streets, stirred up to-morrow's pudding in his garret, while his lean wife and the baby sallied out to buy the beef.

1843 December 19, Charles Dickens, “Stave I. Marley’s Ghost.”, in A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas, London: Chapman & Hall, […], →OCLC, page 16:

The genuine "bloodhound" is not, naturally, the cruel, bloodthirsty animal he is generally supposed to be; nor is he the only dog that will hunt men. Like all pure hounds, he is mild, loving, and kind, and will hunt any game for which he is trained; […]

1870 March 12, “Bloodhounds”, in Oliver Optic [pseudonym; William Taylor Adams], editor, Our Boys and Girls: Oliver Optic’s Magazine, volume VII, number 167, Boston, Mass.: Lee and Shepard, publishers; […], →OCLC, page 169, column 2:

The slasher narrative is as simple as a knife in the head: Some tragic event creates a killer who then seeks bloodthirsty revenge for that primal trauma, and audiences hoot and cringe in equal measure as characters lose their lives one by one, often in unexpected or inventive ways, until a resourceful “Final Girl” manages to defeat the monster.

2017 October 27, Alex McLevy, “Making a Killing: The Brief Life and Bloody Death of the Post-Scream Slasher Revival”, in The A.V. Club, archived from the original on 2018-03-05:

Thirsty for blood: inexorably violent or eager for bloodshed; murderous.


procession

en-verb

procession (third-person singular simple present processions, present participle processioning, simple past and past participle processioned)

processions (present singular third-person)
processioning (participle present)
processioned (participle past)
processioned (past)

From Middle English processioun, borrowed from Old French pourciession, from Latin prōcessiō (“a marching forward, an advance, in Late Latin a religious procession”), from prōcēdere, past participle prōcessus (“to move forward, advance, proceed”); see proceed.

der

To procession the lands of such persons as desire it.

1856, Alexander Mansfield Burrill, A Law Dictionary and Glossary, PROCESSIONING:

(transitive, law, US, North Carolina, Tennessee) To ascertain, mark, and establish the boundary lines of (lands).

North Carolina; Tennessee; North Carolina; Tennessee


coroner

From Middle English coroner, from Old French curuner, from Medieval Latin custōs placitōrum corōnae (“guardian of the crown's pleas”). The function was originally to protect royal properties.

(Commonwealth, Ireland, Japan, law) A public official who presides over an inquest into unnatural deaths, and who may have (or historically had) additional powers such as investigating cases of treasure trove.


panopticon

en-noun

panopticon (plural panopticons or panoptica)

From Ancient Greek πᾶν (pân, “all”) + ὀπτικός (optikós, “visible”). Coined by English philosopher Jeremy Bentham in 1787.


test paper

(law) An instrument admitted as a standard or comparison of handwriting in those jurisdictions in which comparison of hands is permitted as a mode of proving handwriting.


bing

en-noun

bing (countable and uncountable, plural bings)

From Middle English bing, binge, benge, from Old Norse bingr (“heap of corn; bed; bolster”), cognate with Scots bing, Swedish binge (“heap”), Danish bing (“bin; box; compartment”).
Compare also Scottish Gaelic binnean meaning a small hill or slag heap.

der

Solitary confinement
solitary confinement

(prison slang, with "the") Solitary confinement


test case

(law) A legal action intended to set a precedent.

Testfall

a legal action intended to set a precedent


textualism

en-noun

textualism (countable and uncountable, plural textualisms)

And this is the upshot of textualism: textualists do not want judges to make the law. This, at least, is the official doctrine, and it sounds very democratic.

2007, Andrei Marmor, Law in the Age of Pluralism, Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 198:

The Supreme Court’s conservative majority is generally committed to textualism, a judicial approach that focuses on the words of the law as written rather than its larger purpose or the intentions of its drafters. In a 2015 appearance at Harvard Law School, Justice Kagan said that textualism had triumphed across the ideological spectrum. “We’re all textualists now,” she said then.

2022 June 30, Adam Liptak, “Supreme Court Limits E.P.A.’s Ability to Restrict Power Plant Emissions”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:

(law) A formalist legal theory that interprets based on the ordinary meaning of the legal text.