Virtuous English AcademyLaw & Justice — C1 English Vocabulary
This C1 vocabulary list gathers 60 advanced English words about law & justice — higher courts, rights and redress. Every word comes with a simple definition, its British-English pronunciation and a natural example sentence, so you learn each one in real context. When you are ready, open the flashcards to practise and remember them for good.
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jurisprudence/ˌdʒʊə.rɪsˈpruː.dəns/
The theory and study of law.
“She studies jurisprudence.”
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litigant/ˈlɪt.ɪ.ɡənt/
A person involved in a lawsuit.
“Each litigant hired a lawyer.”
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claimant/ˈkleɪ.mənt/
A person who makes a legal claim.
“The claimant won damages.”
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arbitration/ˌɑː.bɪˈtreɪ.ʃən/
The settling of a dispute by an outside judge.
“The dispute went to arbitration.”
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adjudicate/əˈdʒuː.dɪ.keɪt/
To make a formal judgement on a dispute.
“A panel will adjudicate the claim.”
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indictment/ɪnˈdaɪt.mənt/
A formal charge of a serious crime.
“He faces a serious indictment.”
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indict/ɪnˈdaɪt/
To formally charge someone with a crime.
“They may indict the official.”
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exonerate/ɪɡˈzɒn.ə.reɪt/
To officially clear someone of blame.
“New facts exonerate the accused.”
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incriminate/ɪnˈkrɪm.ɪ.neɪt/
To make someone appear guilty of a crime.
“The letter could incriminate him.”
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culpable/ˈkʌl.pə.bəl/
Deserving blame for something wrong.
“The driver was culpable.”
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culpability/ˌkʌl.pəˈbɪl.ɪ.ti/
Responsibility for a fault or crime.
“The court weighed his culpability.”
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mitigating/ˈmɪt.ɪ.ɡeɪ.tɪŋ/
Making a fault seem less serious.
“There were mitigating circumstances.”
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precedent/ˈpres.ɪ.dənt/
An earlier case used as a guide for later ones.
“The ruling set a precedent.”
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tort/tɔːt/
a wrongful act that leads to a civil legal claim.
“It is a matter of tort law.”
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subpoena/səˈpiː.nə/
An order to attend court to give evidence.
“He received a subpoena.”
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affidavit/ˌæf.ɪˈdeɪ.vɪt/
A written statement sworn to be true.
“She signed an affidavit.”
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deposition/ˌdep.əˈzɪʃ.ən/
A witness's sworn statement made out of court.
“The lawyer took a deposition.”
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plea bargain/ˈpliː ˌbɑː.ɡɪn/
A deal to plead guilty for a lighter sentence.
“He accepted a plea bargain.”
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acquittal/əˈkwɪt.əl/
A court decision that someone is not guilty.
“The acquittal surprised everyone.”
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mistrial/ˌmɪsˈtraɪ.əl/
A trial made invalid because of an error.
“The judge declared a mistrial.”
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appellate/əˈpel.ət/
Relating to appeals against court decisions.
“It went to the appellate court.”
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reprieve/rɪˈpriːv/
A delay in carrying out a punishment.
“The prisoner won a reprieve.”
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clemency/ˈklem.ən.si/
Mercy shown in punishing an offender.
“He pleaded for clemency.”
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amnesty/ˈæm.nə.sti/
An official pardon for offences.
“The government offered an amnesty.”
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extradite/ˈek.strə.daɪt/
To hand over an accused person to another country.
“They will extradite the suspect.”
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extradition/ˌek.strəˈdɪʃ.ən/
The handing over of a suspect to another country.
“An extradition request was filed.”
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venue/ˈven.juː/
The place where a court case is held.
“The trial venue was changed.”
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impeachment/ɪmˈpiːtʃ.mənt/
The formal charging of an official with wrongdoing.
“The impeachment failed.”
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defamatory/dɪˈfæm.ə.tər.i/
Damaging someone's reputation with false claims.
“The article was defamatory.”
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slander/ˈslɑːn.də/
The crime of spoken false statements harming someone.
“She sued for slander.”
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libel/ˈlaɪ.bəl/
The crime of written false statements harming someone.
“The paper was guilty of libel.”
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negligence/ˈneɡ.lɪ.dʒəns/
A failure to take proper care, causing harm.
“The case turned on negligence.”
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indemnity/ɪnˈdem.nɪ.ti/
Protection or payment against loss or harm.
“The contract includes an indemnity.”
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restitution/ˌres.tɪˈtjuː.ʃən/
The returning of something or payment for loss.
“The court ordered restitution.”
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damages/ˈdæm.ɪ.dʒɪz/
Money paid to make up for harm or loss.
“He was awarded heavy damages.”
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judiciary/dʒuːˈdɪʃ.ər.i/
The judges and courts of a country.
“The judiciary must stay independent.”
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legislator/ˈledʒ.ɪ.sleɪ.tə/
A person who makes laws.
“Each legislator gets one vote.”
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constitutional/ˌkɒn.stɪˈtjuː.ʃən.əl/
Allowed by a country's constitution.
“It raises a constitutional question.”
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unconstitutional/ˌʌn.kɒn.stɪˈtjuː.ʃən.əl/
Against the rules of a constitution.
“The law was ruled unconstitutional.”
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mandatory/ˈmæn.də.tər.i/
Required by law or rule.
“There is a mandatory sentence.”
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binding/ˈbaɪn.dɪŋ/
Legally forcing you to obey.
“The contract is legally binding.”
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nullify/ˈnʌl.ɪ.faɪ/
To make something legally invalid.
“The court may nullify the deal.”
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arbitrary/ˈɑː.bɪ.trər.i/
Based on personal choice rather than rules.
“It was an arbitrary decision.”
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due process/ˌdjuː ˈprəʊ.ses/
Fair legal treatment as required by law.
“Everyone is entitled to due process.”
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habeas corpus/ˌheɪ.bi.əs ˈkɔː.pəs/
The right not to be held in prison unlawfully.
“They invoked habeas corpus.”
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malpractice/ˌmælˈpræk.tɪs/
Careless or illegal behaviour by a professional.
“The doctor was sued for malpractice.”
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perpetrate/ˈpɜː.pə.treɪt/
To carry out a crime or wrong act.
“Who could perpetrate such a crime?”
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abscond/əbˈskɒnd/
To leave secretly to escape the law.
“They may abscond with the funds.”
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embezzle/ɪmˈbez.əl/
To steal money placed in your care.
“She tried to embezzle the cash.”
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extort/ɪkˈstɔːt/
To get money by force or threats.
“They attempted to extort money.”
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coerce/kəʊˈɜːs/
To force someone to do something by threats.
“They tried to coerce him into signing.”
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coercion/kəʊˈɜː.ʃən/
The use of force or threats to make someone act.
“The confession was made under coercion.”
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duress/djʊˈres/
Threats or force used to make someone act.
“He acted under duress.”
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recidivism/rɪˈsɪd.ɪ.vɪ.zəm/
The tendency of criminals to reoffend.
“The programme cut recidivism.”
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custodial/kʌsˈtəʊ.di.əl/
Involving being kept in prison.
“He got a custodial sentence.”
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exemption/ɪɡˈzemp.ʃən/
Freedom from a rule or duty others must follow.
“They claimed a tax exemption.”
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waiver/ˈweɪ.və/
The giving up of a right or claim.
“She signed a liability waiver.”
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covenant/ˈkʌv.ən.ənt/
A formal, binding agreement.
“The deal included a covenant.”
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mediator/ˈmiː.di.eɪ.tə/
A person who helps two sides reach agreement.
“A mediator helped them agree.”
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ruling/ˈruː.lɪŋ/
An official decision made by a court.
“The ruling pleased nobody.”
Using law & justice words in English
Legal English at C1 is technical rather than merely formal, and this page begins with a pronunciation that catches nearly everyone: indict is said as though the c were not there. It also separates exonerate from acquit, which describe different kinds of clearing, and covers mitigating, one of the few adjectives whose legal meaning learners meet before its ordinary one.
What to watch out for
Indict is pronounced in-DITE
The c is completely silent: indict rhymes with invite, and the noun indictment follows the same pattern. As with debt and doubt, the letter was inserted into the spelling to reflect a Latin ancestor and was never spoken. To indict is to formally charge somebody with a serious crime — a term more common in American than British practice.
Acquit, exonerate, exculpate
To acquit is a court’s formal verdict of not guilty at the end of a trial. To exonerate is to clear somebody of blame, often after the fact and often outside a courtroom: new evidence exonerated him. Exculpate is the most formal and means to show that somebody was not at fault. All three take of: acquitted of fraud, exonerated of any wrongdoing.
Mitigating, precedent, tort
Mitigating circumstances reduce the seriousness of an offence or its sentence; the opposite is aggravating. A precedent is an earlier decision that guides later ones, which is why unprecedented means nothing comparable has happened. A tort is a civil wrong other than breach of contract, and it is the basis of most claims for negligence. Culpable means deserving blame, and the noun is culpability.
Words learners mix up
Legal English keeps distinctions that ordinary English has let go, and three of them come up constantly in news reporting. Getting these right is what separates reading a court report from following one.
Slander, libel and defamation
| Word | What it actually means | In a sentence |
|---|---|---|
| slander | A false spoken statement that damages someone’s reputation. Transient by nature — a remark, a broadcast aside. | He sued for slander over the remarks at the meeting. |
| libel | The same damage in a permanent form: writing, print, a photograph, a broadcast, a post online. | The newspaper settled the libel claim out of court. |
| defamatory | The adjective covering both. The umbrella noun is defamation, which is what you actually sue for. | The judge found the article defamatory. |
The dividing line is permanence, not seriousness — which is why nearly everything published online is libel rather than slander. Note also that libel as a verb doubles the l in British English: libelled, libellous.
Cleared, spared or forgiven — five different things
| Word | What it actually means | In a sentence |
|---|---|---|
| acquittal | A court’s verdict of not guilty at the end of a trial. The verb is acquit. | The jury returned an acquittal on all counts. |
| exonerate | To clear of blame, often long after the fact and often outside a courtroom altogether. | The inquiry exonerated the two officers. |
| reprieve | A postponement or cancellation of a punishment already imposed. Also used generally of anything spared at the last moment. | The prisoner was granted a reprieve hours before the sentence. |
| clemency | Mercy shown by an authority in reducing a sentence. Uncountable, and something you plead for or are granted. | His lawyers appealed to the governor for clemency. |
| amnesty | A general pardon extended to a whole class of people at once, usually by government and usually political. | The new government declared an amnesty for deserters. |
Only the first two say anything about guilt. Reprieve, clemency and amnesty all assume the conviction stands and simply reduce what follows — which is why an innocent person’s campaigners ask for exoneration, not clemency.
Resolving a dispute without a full trial
| Word | What it actually means | In a sentence |
|---|---|---|
| arbitration | Both sides put the dispute to a neutral third party whose decision is binding. A private substitute for a court. | The contract requires arbitration before any court action. |
| mediator | A neutral person who helps the parties reach their own agreement. Has no power to impose anything. | A mediator was appointed to broker a settlement. |
| adjudicate | To make a formal, official decision on a dispute. The noun for what results is a ruling. | The panel will adjudicate on the boundary claim. |
| plea bargain | The defendant admits a lesser charge in return for a lighter sentence, so no trial takes place. Predominantly American procedure. | He accepted a plea bargain on the fraud count. |
The word to watch is binding. Arbitration binds and mediation does not, and that single difference is why commercial contracts specify which one applies. In court, the person bringing a civil claim is the claimant in England and Wales and the plaintiff in the United States; litigant covers either side.
Collocations that sound natural
Legal phrasing is close to fixed. These verbs and adjectives are not stylistic preferences — in most cases the alternative is simply not used, and a court report will read as an obvious translation without them.
damages
award damagesclaim damagessue for damagespunitive damagessubstantial damages
Plural only in this sense, and it takes a plural verb: damages were awarded. The singular damage is the harm itself, not the money.
precedent
set a precedentfollow precedenta binding precedentwithout precedenta dangerous precedent
A court sets a precedent and later courts follow it. Unprecedented is the adjective for something with no earlier parallel at all.
subpoena
issue a subpoenaserve a subpoenasubpoena a witnesscomply with a subpoena
Pronounced sub-PEE-na — the first p is silent. It works as a verb too, and the past is subpoenaed.
negligence
gross negligenceprove negligencean act of negligencecriminal negligence
Gross negligence is a fixed term of art meaning a failure so serious it goes beyond ordinary carelessness.
duress
under duressacting under duresssigned under duress
Almost only ever appears after under. A confession or signature obtained under duress can be set aside.
due process
a denial of due processdue process of lawentitled to due process
Three words, no hyphen, no article in the fixed phrase due process of law.
Formal, neutral or informal?
Legal vocabulary is technical rather than merely formal, and several items here behave differently in British and American usage — a distinction worth knowing before you use one in an exam essay.
- habeas corpusLatin · legalLiterally you shall have the body: the right to have your detention tested before a court. Italicised in some styles, and never translated.
- jurisprudenceAcademicThe theory and philosophy of law, or the body of decisions on a subject — employment jurisprudence. Not a grand synonym for the legal system, which is what learners usually intend.
- indictFormal · AmericanPronounced in-DITE. Central to American procedure through the grand jury; in England and Wales you are far more likely to read that someone was charged.
- depositionTechnical · differs by countryIn American practice, sworn out-of-court testimony taken before trial. In British usage the everyday word for a sworn written statement is affidavit. The word also has an unrelated ordinary sense: removal from office.
- perpetrateFormalOnly ever used of something bad, and with a short list of nouns: perpetrate a crime, a fraud, a hoax, an attack. You cannot perpetrate anything neutral.
- abscondFormal · journalisticTo leave secretly to avoid arrest or an obligation, usually with with: absconded with the funds. Common in news reports and almost never in speech.
- waiverSpelling trapA waiver is a document giving up a right. To waver is to hesitate. They are pronounced identically and no spellchecker will catch the swap: he signed the waiver, he did not waver.
- venueSense shiftIn ordinary English the place an event is held. In law, the proper court or district in which a case must be tried — hence a change of venue when a fair trial is impossible locally.
Sentences to try
Four frames from legal writing. Say the first one aloud and check the silent letter.
- A grand jury voted to indict him on three counts.
- The court acquitted her of all charges.
- New evidence exonerated the two men after twenty years.
- The judge cited mitigating circumstances in reducing the sentence.
Questions about law & justice vocabulary
How do you pronounce "indict"?
As in-DITE, rhyming with invite — the c is entirely silent, and so it is in indictment, pronounced in-DITE-ment. The letter was added to the English spelling in the Renaissance to signal the word’s Latin origin, but it has never been pronounced. English does the same thing in debt, doubt, subtle and receipt. To indict somebody is to charge them formally with a serious criminal offence, a step more prominent in American procedure than in English and Welsh courts.
What is the difference between acquit and exonerate?
To acquit is what a court does at the end of a trial when it finds a defendant not guilty — it is a formal verdict and a legal outcome: The jury acquitted him. To exonerate is to clear somebody of blame or suspicion more broadly, often after the fact and frequently outside any courtroom: The inquiry exonerated the department. A person acquitted at trial may still be widely suspected, whereas exoneration implies that the accusation itself has been shown to be unfounded. Both take the preposition of.
What are mitigating circumstances?
Facts that do not excuse an offence but reduce how seriously it is treated, and therefore the sentence: provocation, genuine remorse, a previously clean record, or acting under duress. The opposite is aggravating circumstances, which make the offence worse — premeditation, abuse of trust, targeting a vulnerable victim. The verb mitigate has a wider ordinary meaning of making something less severe, as in measures to mitigate flood risk, and should not be confused with militate, which means to work against something.