Important Legal Maxims
Actionable Per se
Actions that do not require the allegation or proof of additional facts to constitute a cause of action. Such a tort is actionable simply because it happened
Assentio Mentium
Latin definition for a meeting of minds. The moment when a contract is complete
Pacta sund servanada
A Latin word for agreements are binding. It is a basic principle of civil law, international law, and canon law
Bona Vacantia
Bona Vacatia is a legal concept associated with the property that has no owner. It exists in various jurisdictions, but with origins mostly in English law.
Persona non-grata
Refers to a foreign person whose entry or remaining in a country is prohibited by that country’s government
Alibi
A claim or a piece of evidence when an act, typically a criminal one, is alleged to have taken place
Ipso facto
Ipso Facto is a Latin Phrase, which means that a specific phenomenon is a direct consequence of the action in question, instead of any previous action.
Actio personalis moritur cum persona
A maxim stating that actions of tort or contract are destroyed by the death of the injured or the injuring party.
Actus non facit reum nisi mens sit rea
An act does not make one guilty without a guilty mind. This Latin phrase is often given as the pinnacle of the English common law criminal justice system and is usually in the context of mens Rea.
Jus cogens
Refers to certain fundamental principles of international law, from which no derogation is ever permitted
Pari passu
Is a Latin phrase that describes situations where two or more assets, securities, creditor or obligation are equally managed without situations
Non- sequitur
A conclusion or a statement that does not logically follow from the previous argument or statement
Ubberime Fide
A utmost good faith- it is a legal doctrine that governs most insurance contracts
Vox populi
This phrase is used in English to mean voice of the people.
Corpus Delicti the facts and circumstances constituting a crime.
De Minimis Lex non Curat
A common law principle whereby the judges will not sit in the judgment of extremely minor transgressions of the law.
Ex Post Facto
It is a law that retroactively changes the legal consequence of actions that were committed or relationships that existed, before the enactment of law.
Volenti non fit injuria
Is a common law doctrine that states that if someone willingly places themselves in a position in which harm might result, knowing that some degree of harm might result, they are able to bring a claim against the other party in tort.
Ubi Jus Ibi remedium
Where there is right there is a remedy. Further, when one’s right is denied, the law affords a remedy of an action for its enforcement.
Qui facit per alium facit per se
It is a fundamental legal maxim of the law of agency. It is a maxim often stated in discussing the liability of an employer for the act of the employee
Jus naturale
Natural law is a philosophy that ascertains that certain rights are inherent by human nature, traditionally by god and something that can be understood universally through human reason.
Mala In se
It is a Latin phrase meaning wrong or evil. The phrase is used to conduct assessed as sinful or inherently wrong by nature, independent of regulations governing the conduct.
Per Curium
Denoting decision of the appellate court in unanimous agreement written anonymously.
Obiter Dicta
A judge’s expression of opinion uttered in court or in a written judgment, but not essential to the decision and therefore not legally binding as a precedent.
Ration decidendi
The reason or the rule of law on which a judicial decision is made
Res Judicata
A matter that has been adjudicated by a competent court and therefore may not pursued further by the same parties.
Quantum Merit
A reasonable sum of money to be paid for the services rendered or work done when the amount is due as not stipulated in a legally enforceable contract.
Actori Incumbit Onus Probandi
It is a Latin phrase derived which means that the burden of proof lies on the plaintiff.
In Limine
A motion in limine is a motion that is tabled by one of the parties at the very beginning of the legal procedures and seeks to pull the rug out from under the feet of the other party. This motion is decided by the judge in both civil and criminal proceedings.
Inter Vivos
It is a legal term referring to a transfer or a gift made during one’s lifetime, under the subject of trust.
Respondent Superior
It is a doctrine of law that states that a party is responsible for the vicarious acts of its agents. This common law doctrine was established in the seventeenth century.
Quo Warranto
A writ or a legal action requiring a person to show by what warrant an office or a franchise is held, claimed, or exercised.
Injuria Sine Damnum
The meaning of the above maxim is the infringement of an absolute private right without any actual loss or damage. This was first established in the Gloucester grammar school case.
Caveat emptor
It is the principle that states that the buyer alone is responsible for checking the quality and the sustainability of the goods before a purchase is made.
Ignoria Juris non Excusat
It is a legal principle holding that a person who is unaware of a law may not escape the liability for violating the law merely because one was unaware of its content.
