legal education and practice

Dictum is an abbreviation of the Latin phrase "obiter dictum." As a legal term, a dictum is any statement or opinion made by a judge that is not required as part of the legal reasoning to make a judgment in a case.

Dilatory tactics are when a party to a lawsuit abuses the rules of procedure in order to delay the progress of legal proceedings.

Dillon’s rule is a fundamental tenet of American municipal law. The rule originates from an opinion of Judge John F. Dillon in City of Clinton v. Cedar Rapids & Missouri River Railroad (1868).

"Diminished capacity," as opposed to "not guilty by reason of insanity."

A diplomat is a person appointed by a State or national government to conduct diplomatic activities with a foreign State or government, or with foreign entities such as

Diplomatic immunity is a status granted to a diplomat that exempts them from the laws of a foreign jurisdiction. It must be noted that immunity is a privilege of the state that a diplomatic agent represents. As such, a person cannot allege breach of immunity if the sending state does not contest a violation. 

Diplomatic law is a field of international law concerning the practice of diplomacy, and the rights and obligations of state representatives on the territory of other states. The broad corpus of diplomatic law derives from one of the oldest principles of customary international law, diplomatic immunity, and 

• international law

Direct evidence directly links a person to a crime; it demonstrates "the ultimate fact to be proved" (see: Oliver v. State). U.S. vs Shawntell Curry also holds that “direct evidence is the testimony of a person who claims to have personal knowledge of the commission of the crime which has been charged, such as an eyewitness”.

A directed verdict is a ruling entered by a trial judge after determining that there is no legally sufficient evidentiary basis for a reasonable jury to reach a different conclusion. 

• directed verdict
• Federal Rules of Civil Procedure
• Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure

In a corporation, a director is a person, appointed or elected by the shareholders to sit on the board of directors. Directors have the authority to implement corporate policy, and act by voting to pass board resolutions.

• llcs-corporations-partnerships