After-discovered evidence, or newly discovered evidence, is evidence which existed at the time of the original trial but was only discovered after the conclusion of the trial. After-discovered evidence is an issue predominantly in criminal...
courts and procedure
agent
An agent is a person authorized to act on behalf of another person. The party an agent is authorized to act for is known as the principal. A principal-agent relationship can either be intentionally created or created by implication through...
aggravated
An aggravated crime or tort is one that is committed under circumstances that allow for increased punishments over what the crime/tort would usually receive. Circumstances necessary to raise a standard crime to the aggravated variant of that...
aggregation of jurisdictional amount
A party with multiple claims may wish to aggregate them to meet the jurisdictional amount (also known as amount in controversy) requirement for their desired court. The current amount in controversy requirement is $75,000. While this practice...
alibi witness
An alibi witness is a witness that a criminal defendant calls upon to establish that they were somewhere other than at the scene of the crime at the time it occurred. It essentially allows the defendant to present evidence suggesting that...
alien
Alien is a legal term that refers to any person who is not a citizen or a national of the United States, as listed in the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). There are different categories of aliens: resident and nonresident, immigrant and...
allegation
An allegation is defined as a claim of fact not yet proven to be true. In a lawsuit, a party puts forth their allegations in a complaint, indictment or affirmative defense, and then uses evidence at trial to attempt to prove their truth....
Allen charge
Allen charges (also referred to as dynamite, nitroglycerin, shotgun, or third-degree charges) refer to jury instructions given to a hung jury urging them to agree on a verdict. Allen charges are controversial as some claim they overly...
allocution
Allocution is the direct address between the judge and the convicted defendant prior to sentencing. During the address, the judge speaks directly to the defendant and asks if the defendant has anything to add prior to hearing the sentence....
alternative dispute resolution service
A place or organization that offers alternative dispute resolution opportunities is offering alternative dispute resolution services. These services are designed to resolve conflicts between parties without the need for potentially lengthy...