Cross-Examination

Definition

When the opposing attorney gets to interrogate your witness, hoping to make them look like a liar, a fool, or ideally both.

Example Usage

During cross-examination, the prosecutor systematically dismantled the defendant's alibi.

Origin

From English legal tradition dating to the 17th century

Fun Fact

The right to cross-examine witnesses is considered so fundamental it's in the Sixth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

Source: Trial procedure and evidence law

Related Terms

Beginner

pleaded

The act of formally responding to legal charges or begging someone really, really nicely for something (often mercy). In court, it's how you tell the judge "guilty," "not guilty," or "it's complicated" in official legal speak. Defense attorneys do this professionally while standing up straight and trying to look convincing.

⚖️ Legal

Intermediate

petitioner

The person who initiates a legal proceeding by filing a petition, essentially the one who gets the ball rolling on your date with the judicial system. In appeals, they're the party asking the higher court to review the lower court's decision, usually because they lost and would like a second opinion. The formal legal term for "the one who complained first."

⚖️ Legal

Intermediate

Voidable

Capable of being voided or cancelled, but valid until one party chooses to void it. A legal Schrödinger's contract—simultaneously binding and cancelable.

⚖️ Legal

Beginner

Fee Simple

Absolute ownership of real property with no restrictions—you own it outright, can do whatever you want with it (within zoning laws), and can pass it to your heirs.

⚖️ Legal

Intermediate

antecedent

The thing that came before—whether it's your ancestor, the cause of an event, or the noun that a pronoun refers back to in a sentence. In law, it's usually the prior circumstances that led to the current mess you're arguing about. Basically, it's the "previously on..." recap of whatever situation you're dealing with, minus the dramatic music.

⚖️ Legal

Intermediate

motion to compel

A formal request asking the judge to force the other side to comply with discovery requests they've been avoiding. It's the legal equivalent of tattling to the teacher when someone won't share.

⚖️ Legal

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