While you are studying law, you will undoubtedly come across a number of examples of jargon in law. To begin with, there is negligence. A mistake, done negligently, can result in serious injury or death. In other words, even if the mistake is small, it can turn out to be quite fatal. For example, if you have a car that is not properly maintained, a carjacking could occur.
Another common example of jargon in law is fabrication. You might say something like “The client requested that I fabricate certain information in his application.” This is highly technical, but this example illustrates the lawyer’s point. Lawyers do not like clients who are constantly using legal language.
Take another example of jargon in law. Suppose that you are working for a defense lawyer who is preparing a case study for a trial. What would be appropriate for this kind of research? It would probably be extremely boring and tedious. You would simply have to go through the case study and recreate it in your own words.
If you do not understand what you are reading, there is a good chance that the court stenographer has done a better job of it. But what do you do if you do not understand what the stenographer wrote? If you do not understand what the stenographer wrote, then you do not have a leg to stand on in court and defend your case. You just have to take a pass.
Even if you have been properly instructed on the importance of taking notes, it is still smart to take your own notes when in court. Even if you think that you are legally allowed to take your notes during a trial, you will do yourself a favor by remembering that other people in the courtroom might take notes. If you take your own notes, then you will have them if you need them later. You never know when a question will come up during the trial that you will need to use the information that was written down during cross examination.
There is an example of jargon in law that I like to use often. It goes something like this: “A pre-settlement agreement is a written contract that settles a dispute between the disputing parties that has not gone to trial.” Can you see how this example of jargon in law makes it sound as if attorneys are always giving away the win in a settlement? That is just not true. In fact, if you have ever seen a television commercial for a legitimate settlement firm, then you will have seen these types of commercials.
The bottom line is that no matter where you go in the legal world, lawyers are there to help you. They are trained professionals who want to resolve disputes amicably. They take pride in their ability to do so. If you ever encounter any type of confusion, then don’t hesitate to ask questions. Your lawyer will be glad that you took the time to do so.
An example of jargon in law is probably something along the lines of “a motion to dismiss is a court order that states that there is no longer a case against a person or entity.” You have probably heard of this before if you have ever watched a news report on some type of litigation. As a matter of fact, you might have seen this type of terminology being used if you have watched any type of court proceeding on television. It is not meant to be negative. It is just used to simplify the complex process of deciding or resolving a legal matter.
A third example of jargon in law is something like “disputing a claim is not a legal solution.” Again, you have probably heard of this before if you have ever watched any type of legal news report. It is meant to simplify the legal process so that attorneys do not spend all day trying to figure out what is or isn’t a legal solution. Again, this terminology is meant to save time for lawyers.
The fourth example of jargon in law is something like “no win no fee solicitors.” These are simply lawyers who do not charge any fees if they don’t win the case. Some people are surprised when they find out that this is an example of jargon in law. However, most people know that this is an example of jargon in law because it is used in almost every type of legal proceeding. This shows that lawyers really do need to speak in terms that everyone can understand because it makes their work easier.
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