The clearly erroneous test is a test used by appellate courts when reviewing a holding by a lower court. The test, established by Rule 52(a) of the Federal Rules Civil Procedure, states that fact findings by a judge in a nonjury trial stand...
criminal law and procedure
clemency
Clemency is the power of the President of the United States or a state governor to pardon a criminal or to commute a sentence. The term itself means "leniency" or "mercy."
See, e.g.; Herrera v. Collins, 506 US 390 (1993)....
code
In the practice of law, a code is an organized compilation of existing laws. It is a collection of all the laws in force, including the enacted laws and case law, covering a complete legal system or a specific area. A code can make the...
codefendant
A codefendant is one of multiple defendants jointly sued in the same civil action or formally accused of committing the same crime. For instance, if A sues B and C, B and C are codefendants.
If a defendant sues a different...
codified
To be codified is to be defined or otherwise included in a legislative statute. It is sometimes used in a wider sense to refer to principles that can be found not just in statutes, but also in constitutions, administrative rules, and other...
collateral estoppel
Collateral estoppel is an important doctrine in the fields of criminal law and civil procedure.
In criminal law, collateral estoppel protects criminal defendants from being tried for the same issue in more than one criminal...
color
Color, in a legal sense, refers to the appearance of a thing, as distinguished from the thing itself.
For example, the color of law refers to the appearance of legal authority or an apparently legal right, and is often used to...color of office
Color of office refers to a person acting as if they are in an official capacity as an employee of a governmental unit, but taking action that is not authorized. In other words, an office holder acts under the color of office when they take...
command responsibility
Command responsibility is a jurisprudential doctrine in international criminal law permitting the prosecution of military commanders for war crimes perpetrated by their subordinates. The first legal implementations of command responsibility...
competent
The term competent is used in various legal contexts, including procedure, evidence, and employment. More generally, it refers to the ability to act in the circumstances, including the ability to perform a job or occupation, the capacity to...