Glossary of Legal Terms

Entity – Generic term for an individual or organization which has an independent existence recognized under the law

Escrow – The delivery of real or personal property by one to another through a third party upon the occurrence of certain conditions

Execution – Formally, a sheriff’s attempt to enforce a judgment by searching for and levying upon assets; informally, any effort to collect a judgment

Exemption – The right of a judgment-debtor under state law to hold certain kinds of assets, or assets up to a certain value, free from attachment or execution by judgment-creditors

Ex Parte – Descriptive of a court proceeding or event where only one party is given notice or an opportunity to participate

Expert Witness – A person with specialized knowledge or experience who is called upon to render an opinion in a lawsuit in order to assist a judge or a jury to understand complex facts, events or circumstances

Factor – One who has received goods for sale on behalf of another, or one who finances a credit sale by paying the seller in return for the right to collect the receivable due from the sale

Financing Statement – A document reflecting a security interest, filed with the Secretary or Department of State to give public notice of the security interest

Forcible Entry And Detainer – A lawsuit to obtain possession of a leasehold or real property, commonly known as an eviction

Foreclosure – A lawsuit by which the owner of a mortgage or security interest seeks to terminate the rights of the debtor and third parties in the mortgaged or secured property

Foreign Corporation – A corporation, in a state other than the state under which laws the corporation was created

Foreign Judgment – A judgment rendered by the courts of another state

Forwarder – One who, as the agent of a creditor, refers claims to attorneys for collection

Garnishee – One to whom a garnishment is issued

Garnishment – A legal process for benefit of a creditor to attach assets which are in the hands of a third party but which are owned by or due a debtor

General Partnership – A business entity comprised of two or more owners (“partners”), each of  whom are personally responsible for all debts of the business entity

General Release – A written contract whereby one (the “releasor”) relinquishes or abandons a broad range of rights, claims or causes of action

Guarantee – To assume responsibility for the debt of another

Guaranty – A contract by which one assumes responsibility for the debt of another

Half-Sheet – In some jurisdictions, an official record of the orders, motions or other court events in a lawsuit

Hearsay – Testimony about a statement, oral or written, which was made other than by the witness testifying, that the witness offers as proof of the truth of the statement, generally inadmissible as evidence

Homestead Exemption – The right of a debtor under state law to hold some or all of the value of the debtor’s primary residence free from attachment or execution by judgment-creditors

Inquest Hearing -  In some jurisdictions, a hearing before a judge or jury to consider entry of a default judgment, generally by affidavit rather than by live witness testimony

Insolvent – Technically, the condition of a person or entity unable to pay debts when due, but often used to refer to the condition of a person or entity without assets

Interlocutory – Descriptive of a court event or process after the start of, but before the end of, a lawsuit

Interrogatories – A discovery process by which a party to a lawsuit asks written questions, requiring written answers, of another party or of a witness

Joint Liability – Responsibility for a debt assumed by or imposed upon two or more persons or entities

Judgment – A decision by a court that a party to a lawsuit owes or does not owe money to another party

Judgment-Creditor – A creditor who has obtained a money judgment on its claim

Judgment-Debtor – A debtor against whom a money judgment has been entered

Judgment Lien – A lien obtained by or for a judgment

Judicial Lien – A lien obtained by judgment, levy or other legal process

Jurisdiction – The power of a court to make decisions affecting the rights, interests or property of a person or entity

Jury Demand – A request, usually written, by a party to a lawsuit that a trial be heard by a jury rather than by a judge