BUS 263 EXAM 1 QUESTIONS WITH VERIFIED
ANSWERS
Plaintiff - a person who brings a lawsuit against another
Defendant - a person against whom a lawsuit is brought or who is charged with a
violation of the law
Stare Decisis - practice of relying on previous decisions in which similar disputes arose
Common Law - body of recorded decisions that courts refer to and rely upon when
making later legal decisions
Precedent - model case that a court can follow when facing a similar situation
Case Law - effects of court decisions that involved the same or similar facts
Statutory Law - field of law involving statutes, which are laws passed by Congress or by
state legislatures.
Ordinance - law passed by a local government
(ex. City Council)
Administrative Law - body of rules, regulations, and decisions created by administrative
agencies
Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) - a set of laws that govern various commercial
transactions and that are designed to bring uniformity to the laws of the states
Moral Law - unenforceable obligations that people have to one another
(ex. see someone drowning, morally you should try to help)
Jurisdiction - authority of a court to hear and decide cases (limited to certain
cases/geographical locations)
Original Jurisdiction - court is authorized to hear and decide a case when first presented
Appellate Jurisdiction - power to review decisions of another court
Special Jurisdiction - courts that are limited in authority to hear only certain kinds of
cased
(ex. family court, traffic court, bankruptcy court, tax court)
, Federal Courts - have original jurisdiction in cases involving federal statutes
Diversity of Citizenship - parties are citizens of different states
Crime - violation of a statute
Tort - private wrong that causes injury to another person's physical well-being, property,
or reputation
Treason - levying war against the United States, or the giving of aid and comfort to the
nation's enemies
Felony - crime punishable by more than one year in jail, a fine of more than $1,000, or
both
(ex. murder, arson, larceny, bribery, embezzlement)
Misdemeanor - a less serious crime that is usually punishable in a local jail for less than
one year, or by a fine or both
(ex. certain traffic offenses, thefts of small amounts of money, use of illegal measuring
devices, minor infractions of statutes)
White-Collar Crime - various crimes that typically do not involve force or violence
committed by and against businesses
(ex. embezzlement, insurance fraud, tax evasion, credit card fraud, agreements with
competitors)
Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) - prohibits an
organization's employees from engaging in a pattern of racketeering activity
Securities Fraud - occurs when a person or company provides false information to
potential investors in order to influence their decision to buy or sell securities
Ponzi Scheme - a type of securities fraud in which large gains are promised to
investors, but in reality, newer investments are used to provide a return on older
investments
Arson - willful or malicious act of causing the burning of another's property
Burning to Defraud - People who burn their own property to collect insurance money
Larceny - taking and carrying away a person's property without the use of force and with
the intent to permanently deprive the owner of possession
(ex. robbery, hijacking, embezzlement, shoplifting)
Robbery - taking of property in the possession of another person against that person's
will and under threat of bodily harm
ANSWERS
Plaintiff - a person who brings a lawsuit against another
Defendant - a person against whom a lawsuit is brought or who is charged with a
violation of the law
Stare Decisis - practice of relying on previous decisions in which similar disputes arose
Common Law - body of recorded decisions that courts refer to and rely upon when
making later legal decisions
Precedent - model case that a court can follow when facing a similar situation
Case Law - effects of court decisions that involved the same or similar facts
Statutory Law - field of law involving statutes, which are laws passed by Congress or by
state legislatures.
Ordinance - law passed by a local government
(ex. City Council)
Administrative Law - body of rules, regulations, and decisions created by administrative
agencies
Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) - a set of laws that govern various commercial
transactions and that are designed to bring uniformity to the laws of the states
Moral Law - unenforceable obligations that people have to one another
(ex. see someone drowning, morally you should try to help)
Jurisdiction - authority of a court to hear and decide cases (limited to certain
cases/geographical locations)
Original Jurisdiction - court is authorized to hear and decide a case when first presented
Appellate Jurisdiction - power to review decisions of another court
Special Jurisdiction - courts that are limited in authority to hear only certain kinds of
cased
(ex. family court, traffic court, bankruptcy court, tax court)
, Federal Courts - have original jurisdiction in cases involving federal statutes
Diversity of Citizenship - parties are citizens of different states
Crime - violation of a statute
Tort - private wrong that causes injury to another person's physical well-being, property,
or reputation
Treason - levying war against the United States, or the giving of aid and comfort to the
nation's enemies
Felony - crime punishable by more than one year in jail, a fine of more than $1,000, or
both
(ex. murder, arson, larceny, bribery, embezzlement)
Misdemeanor - a less serious crime that is usually punishable in a local jail for less than
one year, or by a fine or both
(ex. certain traffic offenses, thefts of small amounts of money, use of illegal measuring
devices, minor infractions of statutes)
White-Collar Crime - various crimes that typically do not involve force or violence
committed by and against businesses
(ex. embezzlement, insurance fraud, tax evasion, credit card fraud, agreements with
competitors)
Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) - prohibits an
organization's employees from engaging in a pattern of racketeering activity
Securities Fraud - occurs when a person or company provides false information to
potential investors in order to influence their decision to buy or sell securities
Ponzi Scheme - a type of securities fraud in which large gains are promised to
investors, but in reality, newer investments are used to provide a return on older
investments
Arson - willful or malicious act of causing the burning of another's property
Burning to Defraud - People who burn their own property to collect insurance money
Larceny - taking and carrying away a person's property without the use of force and with
the intent to permanently deprive the owner of possession
(ex. robbery, hijacking, embezzlement, shoplifting)
Robbery - taking of property in the possession of another person against that person's
will and under threat of bodily harm
