Glossary of Legal Terms

The legalities of an individual issue can be complex and varied from issue to issue. Therefore, a list of legal terms and their definitions are presented below to help you understand the legal wording involved in these issues.

Administrative Order: A legal document signed by the EPA or state environmental agency directing an individual, business, or other entity to take corrective action or refrain from an activity.

Administrative Record: The compilation of documents and exhibits by an agency to support or explain a decision.

Amicus Curiae: A term referring to a party authorized by a court to submit a legal brief to assist the court in resolving litigation.

Appeal: A legal term referring to carrying a matter to a higher tribunal.

Brief: A written statement prepared by counsel for arguing a case in court.

Burden of Proof: The obligation imposed on a plaintiff, moving party, appellant, or other party in a legal proceeding in court or before an agency to establish the elements of the claim , without which the case will be dismissed or otherwise lost.

Bylaw or Ordinance: Terms referring to local legislation enacted by towns, cities or counties.

Causation: The element of a case involving proof that one thing resulted in another, sometimes called "Proximate Cause."

Cause of Action: The claim invoked by a plaintiff in a court case.

Civil Suit: A type of legal action in court brought by persons to enforce laws against violators, usually invoking a statutory right to sue without showing traditional standing.

Civil: An area of the law where matters are decided with no criminal consequences, as in contracts, torts, eminent domain, licensing, grants, Civil Penalties, and most administrative enforcement.

Common Law: A body of law made up of court decisions, as contrasted to statutory or constitutional law. Also known as Case Law.

Complaint: The legal document filed in court to commence civil action.

Contempt: The stage in civil litigation where it is alleged that a party has violated an injunction, with the consequence that the court can order an appropriate remedy to cure the contempt.

Contract: An enforceable agreement, written or oral, between two or more parties who intend to do so, usually by offer, acceptance and giving up or gaining something of value, known as a consideration for the contract.

Contribution: An area of the law dealing with seeking reimbursement from other responsible parties for an appropriate share of damages or expenses.

Covenant: One of a number of enforceable promises, which can govern the use of land. Others are called Restrictions, Easements, and Equitable Servitudes.

Criminal: The term applied to any proceeding the resolution of which can result in Incarceration or Money Fines.

Damages: A term referring to injury or harm measurable in monetary terms.

Discovery: The tool of litigation to learn facts in possession of other parties, which might be relevant to the litigation. Forms of discovery include Depositions, Interrogatories, Requests to Produce Documents, and Requests to Admit Facts.

Enabling Act: A term referring to the foundation statute creating an agency and giving it jurisdiction and authority.

Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies: A doctrine about the need for a party to pursue available appeals within an agency before challenging that agency in court.

Expert Witness: A type of person testifying in a legal proceeding in an agency or court who, because of special education and experience is allowed to testify based on hearsay, assumptions, and hypothetical questions. As opposed to a lay witness who is allowed to testify only on the basis of facts.

Equity: A legal doctrine, which emphasizes fairness as opposed to law in resolving disputes. Sometimes referred to as Balancing of Equities.

Fine: A money sanction ordered by a government agency or court, sometimes loosely used to include Civil Penalties but more properly applied to Criminal Fines.

Guideline: A recommended practice issued by an agency, without the force of law.

Hearing: A legal proceeding convened at an announced time and place for a governmental purpose. Some hearings are Public Hearings required by law to be conducted with the opportunity for the public to attend.

Home Rule: A legal doctrine whereby municipalities such as cities and towns are authorized to enact legislation in the form of Bylaws or Ordinances on certain subjects which the state legislature could authorize them to do, without the need to wait for an Enabling Act, or other state approval.

Injunction: A type of court order compelling a party in civil litigation to do something. There are three types of injunctions: the Temporary Restraining Order, the Preliminary Injunction, and the Permanent Injunction.

Innocent: The term applied to a defendant in a criminal prosecution who is determined to be not guilty.

Joint and Several Liability: A legal doctrine holding equally responsible all parties involved, each of which is 100% liable.

Judicial Review: A type of civil litigation challenging a government decision, usually the propriety of some regulatory decision.

Jurisdiction: The term referring to the extent of authority over a subject matter or geographic area.

Lease: A contract between parties dealing with the use and occupancy of real estate.

Mediation: A proceeding involving a disinterested party who hears a dispute and recommends a resolution.

Memorandum of Understanding: An agreement in the nature of a contract between government agencies about how to interpret laws or regulations. Sometimes called a Memorandum of Agreement.

Negligence: Failure to take reasonable care to avoid causing foreseeable harm to another and which failure caused the harm.

Negotiation: Discussions among the interested parties in a dispute to seek a resolution.

Nuisance: Engaging in an unreasonable use of land so as to materially and substantially interfere with the use and enjoyment of the land of another.

Plaintiff: The party starting a claim in civil litigation.

Point Source: Any discernible confined and discrete conveyance, including but not limited to any pipe, ditch, channel, tunnel, conduit, well, discrete fissure, container, or floating craft.

Preemption: The doctrine providing that a higher level of government can buy legislation to prevent a lower level of government dealing with a certain subject matter.

Presumption: An assumption made by law which establishes a fact without the need to prove it.

Pro Bono: Legal services or work done free of charge.

Property Damage: A type of harm involving injury to real estate or personal property.

Pro Se: Appearing for oneself as in cases of one who does not retain a lawyer and appears for himself in court.

Public Trust: A legal doctrine at common law or in state constitutions imposing a duty on the government to manage a resource for the greater good of the public.

Record of Decision: The ROD is published by the EPA after completion of the remedial investigation/feasibility study and identifies the remedial alternative chosen for implementation at the site.

Redress: Satisfaction for injury or damages sustained.

Regulation: A rule of general application and future effect proclaimed by an agency with jurisdiction.

Release: Any spilling, leaking, pumping, emitting, emptying, discharging, injecting, escaping, leaching, dumping, or disposing into the environment (including abandonment of barrels or containers) of any hazardous chemical.

Remand: The result or remedy in court litigation or an agency adjudicatory proceeding where the decision-maker sends the matters back to the agency or within the agency for the original decision to be reconsidered or reissued following proper standards.

Res Judicata: A legal doctrine preventing new litigation by the same parties on the same matter after it has been fully adjudicated.

Riparian Rights: Water rights which govern the relationship between landowners who about water sources, about access to or pollution of the water.

SARA Title III: The Emergency Planning and Community Right-to Know Act of 1986, also known as EPCRA.

Search and Seizure: The area of law dealing with authority of the government to enter private property or search natural persons for evidence or otherwise gather information that is private.

Site Inspection: The collection of information at a CERCLA site to determine the extent and severity of hazards posed by the site.

Special Permit: Approval granted by a local board under zoning to engage in land use on written conditions or terms.

Standing: A concept utilized to determine if a party has sufficient stake in an excusable controversy to be a plaintiff in a lawsuit.

Statute: An enforceable provision of law enacted by a Legislature by passage of an act, with general application and future effect.

Statute of Limitations: A type of statute imposing a time deadline on commencing certain types of civil litigation or criminal prosecution which, if not met, is fatal to the claim or cause of action.

Strict Liability: A legal doctrine imposing responsibility without regard to fault or wrong doing.

Suit: The name given a civil action filed in court. Also known as a Lawsuit.

Summary Judgment: A stage in civil litigation where a party seeks to win on the law applied to facts shown by the pleadings and affidavits to be uncontested.

Sunshine Law: Law, which requires open meetings of government agencies.

Tort: A type of legal wrong of a personal nature.

Town Counsel: An attorney duly appointed and authorized to represent and advise a municipality. For a city it would be City Solicitor.

Trespass: Intentional, unprivileged entry onto the land of another.

Trial: The stage of civil litigation where evidence is presented in court for the tribunal to decide the case "on the merits."

Variance: Permission to do an otherwise illegal act.

Violation Notice: Written notification issued by a government agency and served on the party alleged to be in violation. Sometimes called a Notice of Violation (NOV) or Notice of Noncompliance (NON).

Warrant: A document issued by a court with jurisdiction to approve search and seizure of evidence of crime according to Criminal Procedure. A Civil Warrant would authorize an administrative inspection with civil consequences like enforcement orders or permit restrictions.

GLOSSARY OF ACRONYMS