Retributivism is a theory of criminal punishment which states that wrongdoers should be punished for their wrongdoing proportionate to the severity of their crime rather than to deter future crime or to rehabilitate them. In other words,...
legal theory
rex non potest peccare
Rex non potest peccare is a Latin legal maxim meaning "the king can do no wrong" which developed into the doctrine of sovereign immunity, also known as governmental immunity. Rex non potest peccare originated in English common law and is...
rhadamanthine
Rhadamanthine is a judge’s strict and rigid interpretation or application of the law. It traces its origin to Rhadamanthus, a figure in Greek mythology, who is a judge in the underworld. For example, in In re Bevan, the U.S. Ninth Circuit...
rights
See right.
[Last updated in December of 2020 by the Wex Definitions Team]
rule of lenity
The rule of lenity is a principle used in criminal law, also called rule of strict construction, stating that when a law is unclear or ambiguous, the court should apply it in the way that is most favorable to the defendant, or to construe the...
self-authenticating documents
Self-authenticating documents are considered authentic and require no extrinsic evidence of authenticity to be admitted in a legal proceeding. These documents are recognized by law as having inherent reliability and credibility due to their...
sine qua non
The phrase sine qua non is Latin for “without which not.” When something is described as sine qua non, it is a necessary or indispensable requirement. The phrase represents an essential element, component, or condition of something else....
smoking gun
The phrase smoking gun has widely been used to mean a discovered piece of evidence or fact that proves a theory or point. In law, the term is most often used to describe a piece of circumstantial evidence that will lead to a person’s...
sounds in
Sounds in refers to an underlying legal basis or cause of action in a lawsuit. For example, a tort claim sounds in tort, and a contract claim sounds in contract.
This case from Georgia, shows the use of the phrase “sounds...
Southern Life & Health Ins. Co. v. Morgan
Southern Life & Health Ins. Co. v. Morgan, 21 Ala. App. 5 (Ala. Ct. App. 1925), is an Alabama Court of Appeals case that established that spouses can lose their rights in the honoring of the deceased if they do not act within a reasonable...