Common Legal Terminology
Voir dire -
- Jury selection process of questioning prospective jurors, to ascertain their qualifications and determine any basis for challenge.
Voluntary transfer -
- A transfer of a debtor’s property with the debtor’s consent.
Wage garnishment -
- A nonbankruptcy legal proceeding whereby a plaintiff or creditor seeks to subject to his or her claim the future wages of a debtor. In other words, the creditor seeks to have part of the debtor’s future wages paid to the creditor for a debt owed to the creditor.
Warrant -
- Court authorization, most often for law enforcement officers, to conduct a search or make an arrest.
Witness -
- A person called upon by either side in a lawsuit to give testimony before the court or jury.
Writ -
- A written court order directing a person to take, or refrain from taking, a certain act.
Writ of certiorari -
- An order issued by the U.S. Supreme Court directing the lower court to transmit records for a case which it will hear on appeal.
All terms and definitions on this page are from uscourts.gov/glossary (April 13, 2020)