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Conversation and discussion courts and trials thematic vocabulary

  • 1. Courts: trial courts, common pleas courts, municipal and coun­ ty courts, mayors' courts, courts of claims, courts of appeals, the State Supreme Court.

  • The Federal courts, district courts, the US Supreme Court, juve­nile court.

    1. Cases: lawsuit, civil cases, criminal cases, framed-up cases.

    2. Offences: felony, misdemeanour, murder, manslaughter, homi­cide, rape, assault, arson, robbery, burglary, theft/larceny, kidnapping, embezzlement, bribery, forgery, fraud, swindling, perjury, slander, blackmail, abuse of power, disorderly conduct, speeding, petty offence, house-breaking, shoplifting, mugging, contempt of court, subpoena.

    3. Participants of the legal procedure: 1) parties to a lawsuit: claimant/plaintiff (in a civil case); defendant, offender (first/repeat); attorney for the plaintiff (in a civil case); prosecutor (criminal); at­torney for defence; 2) jury, Grand jury, to serve on a jury, to swear the jury, to convene; 3) witness — a credible witness; 4) a probation offic­er; 5) bailiff.

    4. Legal procedure: to file a complaint/a countercomplaint, to answer/challenge the complaint; to notify the defendant of the law­suit; to issue smb a summons; to issue a warrant of arrest (a search warrant); to indict smb for felony; to bring lawsuit; to take legal ac­tions; to bring the case to court; to bring criminal prosecution; to make an opening statement; the prosecution; the defence; to examine a witness — direct examination, cross-examination; to present evi­dence (direct, circumstantial, relevant, material, incompetent, irrel­evant, admissible, inadmissible, corroborative, irrefutable, presump­tive, documentary); to register (to rule out, to sustain) an objection; circumstances (aggravating, circumstantial, extenuating); to detain a person, detention; to go before the court.

    5. Penalties or sentences: bail, to release smb on bail; to bring in (to return, to give) a verdict of guilty/not guilty; a jail sentence; send smb to the penitentiary/jail; to impose a sentence on smb; to serve a sentence; a penitentiary term — a term of imprisonment (life, from 25 years to a few months imprisonment); hard labor, manual labor; pro­bation, to be on probation, to place an offender on probation, to grant

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    3. probation/parole; parole, to release smb on parole, to be eligible for

    4. parole.

    5. 7. A court-room: the judge's bench, the jury box; the dock, the

    6. witness' stand/box; the public gallery.

    7.