THE LEGAL PROCESS

peculator

A peculator (also referred to as an embezzler) refers to a person who steals money that was under their supervision, by utilizing the benefit or convenience created by their position. The money is not limited to cash, and can include vouchers...

Pedophilia

Pedophilia is a mental disorder where an individual seeks sexual gratification from children. Spelled Paedophilia in British English. The American Psychological Association (APA) Dictionary of Psychology defines pedophilia as “a paraphilia in...

peeping Tom

A person who peeps through a window, door, or other aperture of a building for the purpose of spying on people engaging in intimate activities, such as undressing or sexual acts. The term “peeping tom” may also include “video voyeurism,”...

peer review

Peer review is the evaluation of someone’s work by a group of people in the same profession or field (peers). Peer review is mostly used to maintain the quality of the performance of professionals.

In medical field, peer-review is often being...

penal

In reference to law, “penal” is used primarily as a descriptive term relating to punishments or crimes. For example:

A penal code is a set of statutes that concern criminal offenses (e.g., California Penal Code, Texas Penal Code). A...

penalty

A penalty is the punishment imposed upon a person who has violated the law, whether or a contract, a rule, or regulation. A penalty can be in response to either civil or criminal violations, though civil penalties are usually less severe....

pendent jurisdiction

Pendent jurisdiction was a doctrine which gave federal courts exercising federal question jurisdiction the power to hear related state-law claims that did not independently meet the requirements of federal subject-matter jurisdiction. The...

pendent party jurisdiction

Pendent party jurisdiction is a form of supplemental jurisdiction codified by 28 U.S.C. § 1367. Pendent party jurisdiction was a doctrine asserting that, if federal jurisdiction exists for a claim, the federal district court has the power to...

penitentiary

The term penitentiary is derived from the Latin term paenitentia, meaning repentance. A penitentiary refers to a prison or place of confinement used to hold and correct criminals who have been convicted of felonies. In the Roman Catholic...

Pennoyer rule

A rule that prevents courts from issuing personal judgments against defendants over whom they have no personal jurisdiction. The name comes from a landmark case of the U.S. Supreme Court: Pennoyer v. Neff, 95 U.S. 714 (1878).

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