A

amicus curiae: Latin, “friend of the court”; a person/group that presents a legal brief to the Supreme Court on behalf of a party

appellant: person who files an appeal of a court judgment; usually the party that lost in the lower court

appellate: referring to appeals; any court of law empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal

appellee: opponent of an appeal; usually the party that won in the lower court

B

Bar Review: the every-Thursday-nightly law student social gathering at a local establishment serving fine spirits and brews; during school year

Barrister’s Ball: “law school prom” held in the spring, usually early April

Black’s: the most widely used law dictionary in the U.S.; useful tool

black letter law: basic principles of law generally accepted by the courts and/or embodied in the statutes of a particular jurisdiction

Bookmart: a nonprofit business located on the 2nd floor of the law school which sells law textbooks and materials; only accepts personal checks, traveler's checks, and cash; 1Ls purchase books for the fall semester during Orientation Week

briefing (a case): summary of facts, issue presented, holding and reasoning of a case; important study tool

brief (appellate): a formal written legal argument presented to a reviewing court for the purpose of persuading a higher court to uphold or reverse a decision; presents issues in the case in light of favorable law in the circuit in which the case is held, although relevant and/or controlling unfavorable law will often be presented in anticipation of counterarguments

C

cane toss: Law School tradition in which seniors toss canes in the air during the Homecoming football game; lore holds that if they catch them, they will win their first case

casebook: law school texbooks

certiorari: Latin, "to be informed of"; Supreme Court review of a final appellate decision; requested by a writ of certiorari

clinical: experiential learning programs offered at many law schools focuses on application of legal theory to the provision of free legal services under mentorship of faculty and/or practicing attorneys; unique opportunity to earn course credit while developing substantive knowledge and professional skills

code: refers to statutes organized by subject matter

common law: law developed by through judicial decisions of cases rather than legislative process or executive branch action; precedent that binds future decisions in similar disputes (also see: stare decisis)

civil law: concerns typically private litigation involving civil, or private, rights and remedies; less severe punishments than crimes

Copyshop: located on the 2nd floor of the law school; offers copying, scanning, binding/unbinding, lamination for a modest fee

criminal law: concerns prosecution by the government for acts classified as crimes; involves more severe punishments including incarceration

D

Dean’s Cup: annual charitable competition between UW medical and law students; events include sports, cards, board games, trivia, baking, Salvation Army blood drive, T-shirt sales, and food drive

dicta: part of a judicial opinion that is a judge's editorializing; nonbinding information/explanation

Diploma Privilege: course, grade, and character and fitness requirements which, if fulfilled, allow admission to practice law in Wisconsin without taking a bar exam; Wisconsin is the only state to retain this privilege; law students should consult Read This First! handbook and meet with the Law School Registrar to verify proper course enrollment

doctrine: principle of common law; established through past decisions

due process: 14th Amendment Constitutional guarantee of the basic right to protection against deprivation of 'life, liberty or property, without due process of law'; courts have issued numerous rulings about what this means in particular cases; usually entails a process for fair and consistent legal proceedings

E

Economic Justice Institute (EJI): the Economic Justice Institute is UW Law School's clinical education program dedicated to providing legal services to low-income and under-represented clients in matters involving access to social justice and economic security, including the Consumer Law Clinic, the Family Court Assistance Project, Neighborhood Law Project and Foreclosure Mediation Clinic

F

FJR: the Frank J. Remington Center is a law-in-action clinical program at UW Law School consisting of several projects dedicated to criminal justice

G

gargoyle: UW Law School symbol and mascot

H

holding: court's final determination of a matter of law based on the issue presented in the particular case

I

infra: term used in legal writing meaning that the full citation will appear subsequently

IRAC: method of legal writing; issue presented, rule of law, analysis, and conclusion

J

jurisprudence: philosophy of law; may influence a judge’s legal reasoning, view of the role of legal systems/institutions

K

L

law-in-action: UW Law School’s educational philosophy; focuses on how the law actually works in society and relates to social change; goal is to develop well-educated, thoughtful graduates who can successfully bridge the gap between law school theory and practice

Law Review: student-run journal published 6 times a year of professional and student articles on local, state, national, and international issues in contemporary law; students qualify through a "write-on" at end of 1L year

LEO (Legal Education Opportunities): UW Law School program designed to recruit/retain students and increase number of practicing attorneys of color and other traditionally disadvantaged groups; provides academic and social support network for members while in law school

Lexis/Nexis: online subscription-based legal research service; searchable database including federal and state case law, statutes, and administrative, regulatory, and secondary materials; every UW law student is provided a free Lexis account and training (also see: Westlaw)

LL.M: Master of Laws; research and writing program for students who have already have a U.S. law degree or an equivalent degree from a non-U.S. institution; useful for those planning careers as legal scholars or researchers; no course work

LL.M, Legal Institutions: 24-credit course-based interdisciplinary program designed for individuals who have received law degrees from non-U.S. universities

M

Malpractice Bash: a semi-formal event sponsored by the UW Student Bar Association and Medical Students Association held at the Memorial Union Great Hall in late fall; infamous gathering of the “forces of light” (medicine) and “dark” (lawyers) who may be at risk for future professional malpractice and will likely rely on each other for assistance

Moodle: a web-based course management system that allows students and professors to share information and collaborate online
(log-in)

mock trial: experiential learning club focused on honing skills of trial advocacy and procedure, including opening/closing statements, witness examination, trial preparation, rules of evidence; students must qualify through try-outs in the fall; earn credit, opportunity to compete on local, regional, and national levels

moot court: experiential learning club focused on honing skills of appellate brief-writing and oral argument; students must qualify through try-outs in the spring; earn credit, opportunity to compete on local, regional, and national levels

N

O

OCI: on-campus interviewing; on-campus recruitment programs for 2- and 3Ls; law firms, government agencies, public interest employers and corporate legal departments from various cities conduct screening interviews for summer/permanent employment

P

petitioner: party who lost on appeal, petitions for review (writ of certiorari) of the decision by the Supreme Court

probate: legal process of administering the estate of a deceased person by resolving all claims and distributing property under a valid will; court that oversees a probate or intestate process; related to trust and estate planning

procedural law: law concerned with fair and consistent process for carrying out substantive laws

Q

QLaw: UW Law School student organization dedicated to serving the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) community

R

Read This First!: a must-read collection of practical information for UW law students, including important JD and Diploma Privilege requirements worksheets

respondent: party who lost on appeal and becomes the party defending under review by the Supreme court

restatements: non-binding academic treatises created by the American Law Institutes with the purpose of summarizing and clarifying bodies of common law such as contracts or torts

S

SBA: self-governing organization to serve the interests of UW law students; comprised of 7 representatives from each class, an elected president, and 2 elected vice-presidents

Side Bar: café located on the 2nd floor of the law school off the atrium selling coffee, beverages, snacks

Socratic method: teaching method utilized by many law professors consisting of identifying better hypotheses by steadily questioning, identifying and eliminating those that lead to contradictions; terrifying process for most 1Ls that usually becomes less intimidating when students realize that half the class is distracted and the other half is surprisingly nonjudgmental

statutory law: written law passed by a legislature, as opposed to regulatory law promulgated by the executive branch or common law of the judiciary

Stuart’s Law Review: student-organized spring tradition at UW Law involving musical, comedic, or sketch performances mocking law school and lawyers

substantive law: body of law that defines, creates or confers legal rights/status, or imposes and defines the nature/extent of legal duties (as opposed to procedural law, which determines the process followed to protect substantive rights)

stare decisis: Latin; "to stand by that which is decided"; principle of precedent; prior decisions are to be followed by the courts when faced with similar situations; objective is predictability and stability in the law and legal system

supra: term used in legal writing that means the full citation appears earlier

Symplicity: web-based job bank exclusively for UW Law students maintained by the Career Services Office; students can access up-to-date information on full- and part-time, summer, school year and post-graduation employment

T

tort: body of law that addresses and provides remedies for civil wrongdoings not arising out of contractual obligations; defines what constitutes a legal injury and establishes the circumstances under which a person may be held liable for another's injury due to their intentional or negligent acts

U

V

W

Westlaw: online subscription-based legal research database, similar to Lexis/Nexis; all UW law students receive a free account and training during school

X

Y

Z