Capital offense

— A crime punishable by death.

Case law

— The law as established in previous court decisions. A synonym for legal precedent. Akin to common law, which springs from tradition and judicial decisions.

Claim

— A creditor's assertion of a right to payment from a debtor or the debtor's property.

Collateral

— Property that is promised as security for the satisfaction of a debt.

Contract

— An agreement between two or more people that creates an obligation to do or not to do a particular thing.

Conviction

— A judgment of guilt against a criminal defendant.

Counsel

— Legal advice; a term also used to refer to the lawyers in a case.

Court

— Government entity authorized to resolve legal disputes. Judges sometimes use "court" to refer to themselves in the third person, as in "the court has read the briefs."

Creditor

— A person to whom or business to which the debtor owes money or that claims to be owed money by the debtor.