Terminology: Difference between revisions
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==A== | ==A== | ||
;ab initio:A Latin phrase meaning | ;ab initio:A Latin phrase meaning ''from the beginning''. A marriage which is unlawful is void ab initio, as if it never happened. | ||
;abduction:The taking of a person by force or fraud. In family law, the taking of a child contrary to a court order or without the other parent's permission. In certain circumstances, this may also be a criminal offence. | ;abduction:The taking of a person by force or fraud. In family law, the taking of a child contrary to a court order or without the other parent's permission. In certain circumstances, this may also be a criminal offence. | ||
;abrogate:To revoke or annul. One | ;abrogate:To revoke or annul. One abrogates a contract, like a family law agreement, by doing something expressly contrary to the agreement. One party's act of abrogation may not void the agreement, but will give the other party a reason to go to court to enforce the agreement. | ||
;access: | ;access:Under the ''Divorce Act'', a spouse's time with his or her children following the breakdown of the spousal relationship. Access usually refers to the time with the children of the spouse who has the least amount of time with them. | ||
;account:In law, a lawyer's bill to his or her client. Also, a statement of one person's view of events. | ;account:In law, a lawyer's bill to his or her client. Also, a statement of one person's view of events. | ||
;Act:A law | ;Act:A law made by a government, also called ''legislation'' or a ''statute''. Also, the intentional doing of a thing. | ||
;action:A | ;action:A court proceeding in which one person sues another for a remedy or specific relief, also called a ''lawsuit''. In family law, an action for divorce is a court proceeding in which the claimant sues the respondent for the relief of an order for the parties' divorce. | ||
;address for service:The address at which a party | ;address for service:The address at which a party to a court proceeding agrees to accept delivery of documents. An address for service must be a proper street address within British Columbia; additional addreses for service may include postal addresses, fax numbers and email addresses. | ||
;adoption:In family law, the act or process of one person taking another person's natural child as his or her own. The child then becomes the adopting parent's legal child as if the child were the adopting parent's natural child, and the child's biological parent loses all rights and obligations with respect to the child. | ;adoption:In family law, the act or process of one person taking another person's natural child as his or her own. The child then becomes the adopting parent's legal child as if the child were the adopting parent's natural child, and the child's biological parent loses all rights and obligations with respect to the child. | ||
;''Adoption Act'':A provincial law dealing with entitlement to adopt and the adoption process. | ;''Adoption Act'':A provincial law dealing with entitlement to adopt and the adoption process. | ||
;adoptive parent:A person who has | ;adoptive parent:A person who has become the legal parent of a child who is not his or her biological offspring. | ||
;adultery:The act of a married person voluntarily engaging in sexual intercourse with a person other than his or her spouse | ;adultery:The act of a married person voluntarily engaging in sexual intercourse with a person other than his or her spouse, also called ''cheating'', ''playing around'', ''fishing out of season''. Proof of adultery is grounds for an immediate divorce, providing that the other spouse has not consented to or forgiven the adulterous act. | ||
;advance:In family law, this usually refers to one party obtaining a share of his or her portion of the family | ;advance:In family law, this usually refers to one party obtaining a share of his or her portion of the family property before a final decision has been made about how the property will be divided. | ||
;advocate:A lawyer; sometimes a person other than a lawyer who presents and argues a case in court on behalf of a party to the proceeding. Also, to argue a debated position. | ;advocate:A lawyer; sometimes a person other than a lawyer who presents and argues a case in court on behalf of a party to the proceeding. Also, to argue a debated position. | ||
;affidavit:A legal document in which a person provides evidence of certain facts and events in writing, as if the evidence | ;affidavit:A legal document in which a person provides evidence of certain facts and events in writing, and then swears or affirms that what has been written out is true as if the evidence had been given orally in court. Affidavits must be notarized by a lawyer, notary public or court registrar. Affidavits are used as evidence, just as if the deponent, the person making the affidavit, had made the statements orally before a judge at trial. | ||
;affirm:To promise that a statement is true. When someone | ;affirm:To promise that a statement is true. When someone ''swears'' to tell the truth, they are taking an oath on their faith in a god. Affirming is a substitute for swearing something before a god, most often employed where person making the statement is an atheist or under a religious proscription from making oaths. | ||
;age of majority:The age at which someone becomes a legal adult with the full capacity to act on their own, independent of their parents, including the capacity to sue and be sued. In British Columbia, the age of majority is 19. The age of majority has nothing to do with being entitled to vote or buy alcohol, although federal and provincial laws sometimes link those privileges with the age at which one attains majority. | ;age of majority:The age at which someone becomes a legal adult with the full capacity to act on their own, independent of their parents, including the capacity to sue and be sued. In British Columbia, the age of majority is 19. The age of majority has nothing to do with being entitled to vote or buy alcohol, although federal and provincial laws sometimes link those privileges with the age at which one attains majority. | ||
;agent:In law, someone acting on behalf of someone else, with that person's | ;agent:In law, someone acting on behalf of someone else in a court proceeding, with that person's permission and normally at their express direction. | ||
;alias:A name by which people know you other than your legal name. | ;alias:A name by which people know you other than your legal name. | ||
;alienation:In family law, the actions or statements of a parent which tend to | ;alienation:In family law, the actions or statements of a parent which tend to damage or harm the child's relationship with or affections for the other parent. | ||
;allegation:An | ;allegation:An claim that a certain set of facts is true, such as "on Monday, I had soup for lunch" or "Bob drives a blue Camaro." Also called an ''allegation of fact'' or a ''statement of fact''. | ||
;alternative dispute resolution:A phrase referring to processes for the resolution of disputes outside the court system, including mediation, negotiation and collaborative | ;alternative dispute resolution:A phrase referring to processes for the resolution of disputes outside the court system, including arbitration, mediation, negotiation and collaborative settlement processes. In family law, the purpose of these alternatives to court is to offer a less conflict-oriented and less expensive way to resolve a legal dispute. | ||
;amend:To change or alter a pleading or document which has already been filed in court or given to the other party. The resulting document is a separate document from the original and is called, for example, the "Amended Notice of Family Claim" or the "Amended Counterclaim." | ;amend:To change or alter a pleading or document which has already been filed in court or given to the other party. The resulting document is a separate document from the original and is called, for example, the "Amended Notice of Family Claim" or the "Amended Counterclaim." | ||
;amicus curiae:A Latin phrase meaning | ;amicus curiae:A Latin phrase meaning ''friend of the court''. Usually refers to a lawyer who does not act for any of the parties and assists or brings relevant information to the attention of the presiding judge. | ||
;annulment:A declaration by a judge that a marriage is invalid. The effect of such a declaration is to make it as if the marriage never occured. | ;annulment:A declaration by a judge that a marriage is invalid. The effect of such a declaration is to make it as if the marriage never occured. | ||
;answer:A response to a claim or an allegation of fact. Usually refers to legal documents used to reply to the allegations or claims of another party, such as a Response to Family Claim, an Application Response or a Reply. | ;answer:A response to a claim or an allegation of fact. Usually refers to legal documents used to reply to the allegations or claims of another party, such as a Response to Family Claim, an Application Response or a Reply. | ||
;appeal:An application to a court for | ;appeal:An application to a higher court for the review of a decision of a lower court and, hopefully, the reversal of that decision. A decision of a judge of the Supreme Court is, for example, appealed to the Court of Appeal. | ||
;applicant: | ;applicant:In the Provincial Court, the person who begins a court proceeding. In the Supreme Court, the person who makes an application for for an order, usually an interim order. | ||
;application: | ;application:In the Provincial Court, a court proceeding. In the Supreme Court, a request to the court that it make an order for specific relief, usually on an interim or temporary basis. | ||
; | ;Appliction to Change or Cancel an Order (Form 2):A legal document required by the Provincial Court Family Rules to start a court proceeding to vary or cancel an order or set aside an agreement. | ||
;Appliction to Obtain an Order (Form 1):A legal document required by the Provincial Court Family Rules to start a court proceeding setting out the orders sought by the applicant and briefly summarizing the relevant facts. | |||
;application respondent:In the Supreme Court, the person against whom an application has been brought. | |||
;Application Response (Form F32):A legal document required by the Supreme Court Family Rules setting out the application respondent's position on the relief claimed in an application and the grounds on which that relief is opposed. | ;Application Response (Form F32):A legal document required by the Supreme Court Family Rules setting out the application respondent's position on the relief claimed in an application and the grounds on which that relief is opposed. | ||
;arbitrator:A person selected by the parties to a dispute to resolve their dispute outside the court process and to whom the parties give the authority to impose a settlement | ;arbitration:A dispute resolution process in an ''arbitrator'' selected by the parties to a legal dispute hears the parties' evidence and arguments and made a decision resolving the dispute which is binding on the parties. | ||
;arbitrator:A neutral person selected by the parties to a dispute to resolve their dispute outside the court process and to whom the parties give the authority to impose a settlement. | |||
;argument:In law, persuasion by logical reasoning. Usually refers to oral or written argument presented to a judge following the presentation of evidence about the facts of a case, or to a written brief of argument. | ;argument:In law, persuasion by logical reasoning. Usually refers to oral or written argument presented to a judge following the presentation of evidence about the facts of a case, or to a written brief of argument. | ||
;arrears:Money owing for child support or spousal support as a result of an agreement or a court order | ;arrears:Money owing for child support or spousal support as a result of an agreement or a court order for child support or spousal support that has not been followed. | ||
;assess:To determine the value or amount of something. A lawyer's bill may be assessed by a registrar to determine the proper amount the client should pay. a piece of property may be | ;assess:To determine the value or amount of something. A lawyer's bill may be assessed by a registrar to determine the proper amount the client should pay. a piece of property may be assessed to determine its likely sale price. | ||
;assign:To transfer an interest or right in something, such as property or a cause of action, to someone else. | ;assign:To transfer an interest or right in something, such as property or a cause of action, to someone else. | ||