An arraignment is the first step in a criminal proceeding where the defendant is brought in front of the court to hear the charges against them and enter a plea.
See, e.g. County of Riverside v. McLaughlin 500 U.S. 44 (1991...
civil rights
artificial intelligence (AI)
According to 15 U.S. Code § 9401 artificial intelligence is defined as “a machine-based system that can, for a given set of human-defined objectives, make predictions, recommendations or decisions influencing real or virtual environments.”...
ballot
Ballot has a variety of meanings: 1) a method or process of casting a vote, 2) the actual paper, card, or machine that indicates a voter’s choices in an election, 3) the total number of votes cast in an election, and 4) a list of candidates...
BFOQ
A Bona Fide Occupational Qualification (BFOQ) can be defined as a legally authorized restriction granted to employers to refuse the hiring or a person based on their sex, religion, or national origin. 42 U.S. Code § 2000e-2 allows for an...
Bill of Rights
The Bill of Rights refers to the first ten Amendments to the Constitution, which set out individual rights and liberties. Though these rights originally only applied to the federal government, through the legal doctrine of incorporation, most...
Boy Scouts of America v. Dale (2000)
Overview:
Boy Scouts of America et al. v. Dale (2000) is a Supreme Court case regarding the right to freedom of association under the First Amendment. This case established expressive association as an important First Amendment right. That...
Brown v. Board of Education (1954)
Overview:
Brown v. Board of Education (1954) was a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision that struck down the “Separate but Equal” doctrine and outlawed the ongoing segregation in schools. The court ruled that laws mandating and enforcing...
citizen's arrest
Citizen’s arrest is an arrest made by a private citizen, in contrast to the typical arrest made by a police officer.
Citizen’s arrests are lawful in certain limited situations, such as when a private citizen personally...
civil
In reference to law, “civil” is used primarily as a descriptive term to denote conflicts between private individuals. Where in a civil case two or more individuals or private entities (such as corporations) dispute their rights relative to...
civil liberties
Civil liberties are freedoms guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution (primarily from the First Amendment). They are natural rights which are inherent to each person. While they are commonly referred to as "rights," civil liberties actually...