motion

Definition

A formal request or proposal made in court by one party, asking the judge to do something or make a ruling. Lawyers submit motions the way toddlers submit requests for candy—frequently and with great hope.

Example Usage

The attorney filed a motion for summary judgment to dismiss the case without trial.

Source: Merriam-Webster via Free Dictionary API

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embezzlement

The white-collar crime where trusted employees prove they can't be trusted by helping themselves to company funds. It's theft with extra steps and a fancier vocabulary, typically involving someone with financial access who decides their employer's money would look better in their own account. Unlike robbery, embezzlement requires both access and the audacity to pretend it's totally normal to redirect corporate funds to your offshore vacation fund.

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Plea Bargain

A deal where you agree to plead guilty to a lesser charge so everyone can go home early, which is basically the legal version of settling for the lunch special because the full menu takes too long.

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suing

The formal process of dragging someone to court and demanding compensation for wrongs, whether real, imagined, or somewhere in between. It's the adult version of telling the teacher, except it costs thousands in legal fees and takes years instead of minutes. The nuclear option of dispute resolution that enriches lawyers while both parties slowly lose the will to live through discovery.

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admissible evidence

Information that meets legal standards to be presented in court, having survived the gauntlet of relevance, reliability, and procedural rules. If evidence were nightclub guests, this is what makes it past the velvet rope.

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pursuant

Legal jargon's favorite pretentious way of saying 'according to' or 'in compliance with,' typically preceding a citation that nobody will actually read. Lawyers sprinkle this throughout contracts and memos to sound impressively formal while basically just pointing at rules they're following. If you see this word, brace yourself for a reference to some statute, regulation, or policy that's about to justify whatever bureaucratic nonsense comes next.

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lien

A legal IOU that lets creditors plant their flag on your property until you pay up. Think of it as a financial barnacle that attaches to your assets and won't let go until the debt is satisfied. It's the reason why clearing title before a real estate closing is more complicated than your relationship status on Facebook.

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A legal doctrine where you can actually gain ownership of property by possessing it openly and continuously for a statut...