Tort Law
The body of law governing negligence, intentional interference, and other wrongful acts for which civil action can be brought, except for breach of contract, which is covered by contract law.
Legal
Tort
A legal term denoting a wrongful act resulting in injury or damage on which a civil court action, or legal proceeding, may be based.
SUPERFUND
A federal law enacted in 1980 to initiate cleanup of the nation’s abandoned hazardous waste dump sites and to respond to accidents that release hazardous substances into the environment. The law is officially called the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act.
Summons
In civil practice, an issued order commanding a defendant to appear and answer the complaint or have default judgment entered against him/her. In criminal practice, a summons is a process issued to an accused, directing appearance before the court at a specified future time in connection with the charges. Its function is to obtain a … Read more
Subrogation
The legal process by which an insurance company, after paying a loss, seeks to recover the amount of the loss from another party who is legally liable for it.
Subpoena
Literally, “under penalty.” An order issued by a court commanding a witness to appear and testify under pain of punishment for contempt of court for failure to do so. A “subpoena duces tecum” (literally, “bring with thee, under punishment”) is a subpoena commanding a witness to bring specified books, papers, or other tangible evidence.
Strict liability
In tort law, liability imposed without any showing of negligence.
Stipulation
An agreed fact in a legal proceeding. In order to save time in a trial, the parties may agree to matters so obvious or irrefutable that requiring formal proof would waste time and effort. Possible stipulations often are an item of discussion in pretrial conferences.
Statute of limitations
A series of statutes limiting the time within which a civil action or criminal action may be brought after it arises. Time limits vary depending on the type of action involved. The unexcused failure to bring an action in time bars it forever.
Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX)
The Sarbanes-Oxley Act was signed into law on 30th July 2002, and introduced legislative changes to financial practice and corporate governance regulation. It introduced stringent new rules with the stated objective: “to protect investors by improving the accuracy and reliability of corporate disclosures made pursuant to the securities laws”. The act is named after its … Read more