ACADEMIC TOPICS

trial practice

Trial practice refers to the procedures and strategies employed by attorneys and other legal professionals during the preparation for and conduct during a trial. It encompasses all the activities involved in presenting a case in court, from...

underwriter

An underwriter is an institutional financial organization that assesses and assumes another party’s risk for a fee. Underwriters operate in the context of (1) securities offerings and (2) insurance.

(1) In the context of...

Uniform Resource Locator (URL)

A Uniform Resource Locator, or URL is the address of a specific location on the web. As explained by the Computer Security Resource Center, a URL is a reference to a web resource that specifies its location on a computer network and a...

unlawful

The term unlawful is a general description for conduct that is illegal or not authorized by law.

The term is sometimes used in a more narrow sense; for instance, unlawful may refer only to conduct that is criminally...

unseasoned issuer

An unseasoned issuer is any issuer subject to period reporting requirements, i.e. is a public company, but who is not eligible to file a Form S-3 or a Form F-3 for a primary offering, i.e. is not a seasoned issuer or a well-known seasoned...

vague

Vague means hazy, uncertain, or imprecise. The term vague is used in reference to language - especially sentences and paragraphs - that are not clearly expressed. A criminal statute is void for vagueness if it is so vague that it fails to...

vagueness doctrine

The vagueness doctrine is a Constitutional requirement criminal laws must explicitly state and define what conduct is prohibited and punishable. Under the vagueness doctrine, a criminal law cannot be too obscure for the average American...

variance

A variance is an officially granted exception to a zoning ordinance. Such exceptions may be granted on a case-by-case basis for some persuasive reason shown. See: real property

A variance is also the difference between two...

verbatim

Verbatim means to use exactly the same words as another; usually when transcribing, quoting, or recording the original material word for word, such as making a verbatim transcript in a proceeding.

[Last updated in May of 2022 by the...

vested

The term vested describes a right, interest, or title that is absolute, fixed, and not subject to being taken away or “divested.” When a right is vested, the person with the right has a guaranteed legal claim or entitlement that can be...

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