A breach is a violation of law or when a party fails to perform their part of a contractual agreement. For more information, see breach of contract.
[Last updated in June of 2022 by the Wex Definitions Team]
legal education and writing
brief
A brief is a written argument submitted to the court. Lawyers often prepare briefs which highlight and clarify certain information or provide legal comparisons in an attempt to persuade the courtroom to rule in favor of that lawyer’s client...
bureaucracy
Bureaucracy is a term composed of bureau (meaning "writing desk" in old French) and -cracy (meaning "power" in Latin). A bureaucracy is a form of work organization. The historical meaning of the term refers to a body of non-elected government...
but cf.
But cf. is a signal indicating that the cited source supports something similar to the opposite of the claim (proposition) just made by the author. In other words, the cited source probably conflicts with the author's claim. But cf. is the...
but see
But see is a signal indicating that the cited source clearly supports the opposite of whatever the author just said, although an inference is required to see the contradiction. In other words, “but see” indicates that the source that follows...
but-for test
The but-for test is a test commonly used in both tort law and criminal law to determine actual causation. The test asks, "but for the existence of X, would Y have occurred?"
In tort law, but-for causation is a prerequisite...
CALI
CALI stands for the Center for Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction. CALI is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) consortium of most of the law schools in the United States, which creates educational resources available to registered law students.
...canons of construction
Canons of construction is defined as a system of rules or maxims that is used to interpret the legal instruments such as statutes. There are several canons of construction such as contra proferentem and ejusdem generis, that are used by...
case system
Case system is a customary means of instruction in law schools where general legal principles are learned through the reading and discussion of cases. Typically, students in a class are assigned to peruse one or more cases on a particular...
causa mortis
Causa mortis is a Latin term referring to the awareness that death is approaching. In property law, when a party, acting with awareness that their death is approaching, gives something to another party, the resulting gift is known as a gift...