http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner en-us Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:39:19 -0700 Wed, 30 Sep 2009 11:41:21 -0700 BlogCFC http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m9d30-Lets-be-reasonable?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner So what makes somebody a reasonable person, anyway?Like it or not, there are some requirements to being reasonable. We expect a reasonable person to know certain things, like: fire burns, a loaded gun can go off and if you spill your latte all over s... negligence Wed, 30 Sep 2009 11:41:21 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m9d30-Lets-be-reasonable?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m8d10-a-reasonable-myth?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner We’ve all heard of the reasonable mistake, (like shouting hello to a stranger who looks just like an old friend) or the reasonable accident (like two people coming around a corner at the same time and running smack into each other). The law mak... negligence Mon, 10 Aug 2009 18:15:08 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m8d10-a-reasonable-myth?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m7d20-Dear-Prudence?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner I ended my last column with a mouthful of legal jargon, which takes all the fun out of negligence and leaves it as dead and uninteresting as a background corpse in a horror flick.I finished with that clever and pithy phrase: “. . .the person at... negligence Mon, 20 Jul 2009 17:22:49 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m7d20-Dear-Prudence?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m7d15-Thou-shall-not-be-negligent?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner  Of the three types of torts, intentional, negligent and strict liability, the superstar of the group is negligence. Negligence can be found wherever there are human beings who don’t do what they are suppose to do, or do something they are... tort negligence Wed, 15 Jul 2009 15:59:15 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m7d15-Thou-shall-not-be-negligent?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m7d14-To-injury-is-human?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner Insert photo caption or credit here Terms like “tort” have been around for hundreds of years. The Romans gave it to the French (from the Latin word for twisted) and the French gave it to the English (from the Old French word for a wr... tort Tue, 14 Jul 2009 07:11:16 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m7d14-To-injury-is-human?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m7d8-Tort-or-torte?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner  Despite the similarity in appearance and pronunciation, torte and tort are two words with very different meanings. One of them is something delicious, made of cream and pastry. The other--is not.  A tort is an injury and unless that t... tort Wed, 08 Jul 2009 15:19:04 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m7d8-Tort-or-torte?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m7d7-Blogging-and-Defamation?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner  The internet has turned the world of communication upside down and areas of the law connected to media---such as defamation--are still staggering around like drunk party-goers trying to figure out which way to go. We had this nice set of l... First Amendment defamation Tue, 07 Jul 2009 13:02:00 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m7d7-Blogging-and-Defamation?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m6d29-The-Malicenator?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner Not only do you find malice connected to defamation, but you find the concept of malice in many areas of the law with many names. There is actual malice, express malice, malice in fact, constructive malice, implied malice, malice in law, legal malice... title companies Mon, 29 Jun 2009 17:01:20 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m6d29-The-Malicenator?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m6d24-The-absenceor-presenceof-malice?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner  Malice appears to be just an ordinary word but it is such a juicy word it not only made it into the realm of legal jargon, it also is the name of rock bands, movies, comic book characters and rappers. The very sound of the word conjures up a si... defamation Wed, 24 Jun 2009 13:58:35 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m6d24-The-absenceor-presenceof-malice?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m6d22-Just-a-little-bit-famous?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner When it comes to commenting on people, legally it makes a great deal of difference if the person is private or public. A public person is a famous (or newsworthy) person. Now, we can all look at President Obama, Kobe Bryant, or Tom Cruise and se... defamation Mon, 22 Jun 2009 15:40:32 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m6d22-Just-a-little-bit-famous?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m6d16-Defamation-of-the-famous?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner Before I disappeared in a puff of smoke then reappeared like something washed up on the beach, I was talking about the legal jargon surrounding gossip, opinions, and comments. In the legal business this jargon is called defamation and comes in two fl... Tue, 16 Jun 2009 14:39:51 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m6d16-Defamation-of-the-famous?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m6d15-Leaving-the-absence?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner   Leave of absence. The phrase "leave of absence" is so commonly used we really don’t think of it as legal jargon, yet it has made its way into legal dictionaries along with a group of other phrases all beginning with t... legal jargon Mon, 15 Jun 2009 12:44:32 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m6d15-Leaving-the-absence?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m5d7-Power-to-the-reputation?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner Defamation is an umbrella term. Underneath it you will find libel and slander revving their engines waiting to take off.  Defamation is the derogatory comment, libel and slander have to do with the way  the comment gets to other people.&nbs... legal jargon Thu, 07 May 2009 15:57:35 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m5d7-Power-to-the-reputation?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m5d6-Legal-Jargon-Thats-defamation?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner Okay, okay, we’ve all heard it. On television, in movies, at the neighborhood coffeehouse, at work or just about any other place you can think of, somebody somewhere will get mad and bark, “You can’t say that--That’s Defamatio... legal jargon Wed, 06 May 2009 08:53:54 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m5d6-Legal-Jargon-Thats-defamation?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m5d4-Would-you-like-a-little-legal-jargon-with-that?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner Today, I officially start my column  under its new name The Legal Jargon Examiner.  Here is the place where you can find out what those nasty little words mean.  If you are harrassed or annoyed by a particular phrase or just ... legal jargon Mon, 04 May 2009 14:32:38 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m5d4-Would-you-like-a-little-legal-jargon-with-that?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m4d28-Legal-Jargon--per-se-or-per-quod?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner  Although the legal term per se has made it into dinner/diner conversations, per quod  has been left out in the cold. Per quod just doesn’t have the same zing that per se does, nor does it mean the same thing. Actually, it m... legal jargon Tue, 28 Apr 2009 13:09:49 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m4d28-Legal-Jargon--per-se-or-per-quod?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m4d27-Legal-Jargon-per-se-you-say?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner  What is a legal opinion without a per se here and there?  Not only is this a term of legal jargon, it has found its way into many dinner conversations. Saying “per se” is a great way to impress people--sometimes positively, som... legal jargon Mon, 27 Apr 2009 11:55:43 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m4d27-Legal-Jargon-per-se-you-say?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m4d22-Legal-Jargon-welcome-to-the-party?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner One of the most well known phrases in legalese is “party of the first part.” It is invariably followed by the “party of the second part.” These phrases are nearly guaranteed to cause your eyes to glaze over. Som... Wed, 22 Apr 2009 15:36:19 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m4d22-Legal-Jargon-welcome-to-the-party?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m4d21-Legal-Jargon-whats-that-mean?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner Perhaps the second most important question in day to day life is: “What’s THAT mean?” We are surrounded by things that mean something. We know they mean something and we know there are people out there who know what that someth... legal jargon Tue, 21 Apr 2009 14:29:58 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m4d21-Legal-Jargon-whats-that-mean?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m4d16-Contracts-I-accept-you-just-the-way-you-are?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner In keep with the theme of ripping off lyrics from old songs, it can be said that contracts exist in every move you make and every step you take. You may not notice because—nobody’s watching you. Unless of course, you accept a contract, or... contracts internet user agreements Thu, 16 Apr 2009 15:04:46 -0700 http://www.examiner.com/x-2096-Legal-Jargon-Examiner~y2009m4d16-Contracts-I-accept-you-just-the-way-you-are?cid=exrss-Legal-Jargon-Examiner