18.9.2
Key terms
abrogate to pass an Act of Parliament to cancel or abolish a law (precedent) made by the courts accused the party in a criminal trial against whom an action has been brought Act a law passed by parliament bill a proposed law that has not yet been agreed to by parliament or received royal assent balance of probabilities requires reasonable satisfaction that the facts as presented are probably correct and occurred as stated beyond reasonable doubt based on evidence, there is no other logical conclusion that can be made other than that the accused is guilty binding precedent a decision made in a higher court in the same court hierarchy that must be followed by a lower court where the facts of the cases are similar breach of contract a situation where a legally binding agreement is not honoured by one or more of the parties to the contract burden of proof the legal principle describing who has to prove a case in court. In a criminal trial, this burden is on the prosecution. Cabinet the main group of parliamentary members from the governing party codified refers to laws that have been collected and organised, usually in written form common law law developed by judges through the decisions of courts Crown the King’s authority in the Australian parliament, represented by the governor-general at the federal level and a governor at the state level customary law rules for behaviour developed by and for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples defamation unlawful damage to a person’s good reputation through written or verbal statements defendant the party in a civil trial against whom an action has been brought democracy a form of government in which the people determine how they will be governed dispute an argument homicide the killing of one person by another person jury in a criminal trial, a randomly selected group of people who decide the guilt or innocence of an accused person indictable offence a serious criminal offence such as murder or armed robbery legislation a law made by parliament liable legally responsible for a civil wrong magistrate a court official who hears cases in the lowest court in the legal system manslaughter the accidental or unintentional killing of one person by another person negligence a situation where a person breaches a duty to exercise reasonable care to avoid a foreseeable risk, resulting in another person being injured or suffering a risk of injury nuisance interference with someone’s enjoyment of public or private property opposition the main political party in the lower house of parliament that’s not in power persuasive precedent a decision made in a lower court or a court in a different hierarchy that does not have to be followed but may be used as a guide plaintiff the person who commences a legal action in civil law precedent a legal principle developed by a court in the process of resolving a dispute presumption of innocence a person charged with a criminal offence should be treated as innocent, until evidence presented in court proves they are guilty prosecute to take legal action against another person for a criminal offence referendum the process of allowing the people to vote on an important issue that will result in a change to the Australian Constitution ruleof law a legal principle that all citizens are subject to the law and equal before the law. The law applies equally to all citizens regardless of status or wealth. standard of proof the level of proof required to establish a case. In criminal law, the prosecution must prove that the accused is guilty beyond reasonable doubt. statute law law made by parliament statutory interpretation the process used by judges to decide the meaning of words or phrases in a statute (Act of Parliament) summary offence a minor criminal offence such as a road traffic offence and minor assault tabled in parliament the document has been presented to the parliament and laid on the table in either or both houses of parliament. This means it is available to members for review.
558 Jacaranda Humanities Alive 8 Victorian Curriculum Third Edition
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