The Aguilar-Spinelli test is a legal standard used in the United States to evaluate the validity of a search warrant based on information provided by an informant. It stems from two U.S. Supreme Court cases: Aguilar v. Texas and Spinelli v....
criminal procedure
a fortiori
A fortiori signals an argument that it is based on an even stronger argument. In Latin, the term literally means ‘from [the] stronger’. A fortiori is generally used to suggest that an argument is based on another argument so strong as to make...
a priori
A priori signals an assertion that is based on prior knowledge or intuition. In Latin, the term literally means ‘from [the] former’. An a priori determination is formed prior to investigation.
For example:
In...a.k.a.
A.K.A. is the abbreviation of “also known as.” It is often used to specify a party’s aliases or nicknames in a case.
[Last updated in June of 2022 by the Wex Definitions Team]
ab initio
Ab initio is a Latin term that means "from the beginning” or “from inception.” Ab initio is used to indicate that some fact existed from the start of a relevant time period. It is often used as part of the phrase “void ab initio,” meaning...
abate
Abate is to eliminate or nullify.
The term is often used in relation to the elimination of a nuisance. For example, California Civil Code § 3491 provides that one of the “remedies against a public nuisance [is] abatement.”...
abatement
Abatement is the act of reducing or nullifying something. Multiple subjects throughout law are subject to abatement and the term appears in many locations.
In property law, abatement refers to a reduction in property taxes a...
abatement ab initio
Abatement ab initio is a rule in criminal law which negates a conviction if the defendant died before they could exhaust all appeals. In People v. Mount, a California Court of Appeals described the rule as dismissing or remanding a criminal...
abscond
Abscond means leaving a jurisdiction secretly or suddenly, e.g. to avoid service of process, arrest, or prosecution; or leaving with another person's money or property. Absconding is generally a criminal offense which may lead to imprisonment...
absolute disparity
Absolute disparity is a calculation used to analyze a claim that a jury pool did not represent a fair cross-section of the community. For instance, a jury pool that is composed of only white jurors in a community that is predominantly Black....