The Australian legislation is rife with extremely specialised terminology that a majority of people might have trouble understanding. When you, or someone near to you continues to be confronted with a criminal charge, it’s vital that you see the legal terminology which is likely to come up in legal documents and within a trial. Here we’ve provided a list of a few of the more confusing terms and definitions often found in the Australian criminal justice system.
Acquittal:
This term is employed if the magistrate, jury or appeal court realize that one is simple with the charges against him/her.
Affidavit:
An itemized declaration made under oath before a notary public or any other authorised officer. The person who has written the declaration claims that the contents are, towards the best of their knowledge, true.
Appeal:
To generate an appeal is to require a case to a higher court so that you can challenge a choice created by a lower court or tribunal. For instance, an appeal from a decision with the Federal Circuit Court of Australia could possibly be designed to the government Court. The person who appeals is called the ‘appellant’. However, it’s important to note that not all decisions might be appealed.
Committal Hearing:
This is a hearing of all evidence that props up charge in the lower court by way of a magistrate who decides if there is sufficient evidence for that case to venture to trial. In some committal hearings, there might be witnesses who are required to provide evidence.
Complainant:
This can be the saying used in court to consult the victim with the crime committed.
Defendant:
This can be the saying used in court to consult the one who has been charged with an offence. This term is interchangeable with ‘the accused’.
Deposition:
This is a typed copy with the evidence recorded in court.
Exhibits:
All evidence (besides evidence given by the witnesses) required to present the situation towards the court, such as photographs, clothing, documents or some other goods that could possibly be relevant to the situation.
Indictable Offence:
A serious Brisbane criminal lawyers which is commonly heard in the higher court before the court and a jury. Less serious indictable offences, called summary offences, are often heard in the Local Court.
Indictment:
This is a formal written accusation charging you are not an offence which is intended as tried in the higher court.
Jurisdiction:
This can be the extent of legal authority/power with the Court to apply the law. For instance, in Australia the government Court has jurisdiction under greater than 150 Acts with the Commonwealth Parliament.
Mediation:
This is a process whereby a neutral alternative party, called the mediator, assists in leading to a compromise or agreed settlement without requiring the choice of the Court.
Plaintiff:
This can be the saying used to consult the individual or party who initiates a civil action. In other words, this can be the person or party who brings an incident against the defendant, and seeks punishment for that person or people who committed the crime.
Plea:
This is where the accused person (the defendant) tells the court whether or not they are guilty or otherwise accountable for the charge against them. If your accused pleads guilty, a trial won’t come about along with the case proceeds to a sentencing hearing, which determines the punishment for that crime.
Subpoena:
A subpoena compels the look of somebody at a trial so that you can testify and/or produce documents. This is a order from the court, of course, if it’s disobeyed, the disobedient person might be in contempt of court.
Voir Dire:
This is a legal argument concerning the admissibility of the certain bit of evidence in court. In the case that this argument should take place, the witness along with the jury are sent out of court until it finishes.
If you have inquiries regarding a criminal charge in Brisbane, please don’t hesitate to call us. Right here at Guest Lawyers, we specialize in criminal law and can be happy to help you with inquiries or concerns. Our aim is to supply honest, respectful and easy to understand legal counsel so that you can reduce the stress related to your litigation.
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