Legal Glossary
Plain-English definitions of 10,000+ legal terms used in U.S. law — courts, contracts, criminal, civil, family, immigration and more.
Browse by letter
26 alphabet hubs, each listing every term that starts with that letter — one click to reach any definition.
A
1,091 terms
B
418 terms
C
1,172 terms
D
704 terms
E
505 terms
F
469 terms
G
203 terms
H
234 terms
I
477 terms
J
181 terms
K
39 terms
L
502 terms
M
435 terms
N
279 terms
O
193 terms
P
818 terms
Q
59 terms
R
525 terms
S
816 terms
T
389 terms
U
167 terms
V
132 terms
W
175 terms
X
3 terms
Y
4 terms
Z
8 terms
Most-read terms
- Deterrence (penology)
- Power of arrest
- Inventor's notebook
- Vicarious liability
- Civil law (legal system)
- International Criminal Court
- International Business Companies Act
- penal populism
- Internal Revenue Bulletin
- Accessory (legal term)
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About this glossary
Definitions are written for general information only and are not legal advice. Sources include U.S. federal courts (public domain), Cornell LII Wex (CC BY-SA 2.5), Wikipedia / Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0), and Bouvier's Law Dictionary (1856, public domain).