A verdict is the formal decision or judgment rendered by a court at the conclusion of a trial or legal proceeding. It represents the culmination of the entire legal process. Verdicts are reached by a judge or a jury, depending on the type of...
THE LEGAL PROCESS
verification
Verification is a declaration swearing that statements made in a document are true. Depending on the jurisdiction, verifications are either made under oath or in the presence of a notary public or similarly authorized person. Verifications are...
vertical privity
In business law, vertical privity is the relationship between companies in a distribution chain (e.g. a manufacturer and a distributor). Those in vertical privity are jointly liable for product defects in the vertical chain.
...vexatious litigation
Legal proceedings started with malice and without good case. Vexatious litigation is meant to bother, embarrass, or cause legal expenses to the defendant. A plaintiff who starts such litigation either knows or should reasonably know that no legal...
vigilante
Someone who personally claims to enforce law and order, but lacks legal authority to do so. Vigilantes operate by using actual or threatened force, and are distinguished from people who simply watch out for criminal behavior and report it to the...
vigilante justice
Behavior that resembles or matches that of vigilantes. Vigilante justice often describes the actions of a single person or group of people who claim to enforce the law but lack the legal authority to do so. However, the term can also describe a...
vigilantism
See Vigilante justice.
Village of Euclid v. Ambler Realty (1926)
Village of Euclid v. Ambler Realty Co., 272 U.S. 365 (1926), is a U.S. Supreme Court case in which the court held that a zoning ordinance can be a valid exercise of a state's police powers. The Supreme Court raised the bar for declaring a...
voir dire
French for "to speak the truth." The process through which potential jurors from the venire are questioned by either the judge or a lawyer to determine their suitability for jury service. Also the preliminary questioning of witnesses (especially...
voluntary manslaughter
Killing another person without deliberation, premeditation, or malice aforethought. Committed while in the heat of passion, or else, as a result of some kind of adequate provocation.