Arraignment: The initial step in a criminal prosecution whereby the defendant is brought before the court to hear the charges and to enter a plea.

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Administrative License Suspension: 

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Bifurcation: To separate into two parts, especially for convenience.

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Bind Over: To put (a person) under a bond or other legal obligation to do something, especially to appear in court.​

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Complicity: Involvement in a crime together with other people; association or participation in a criminal act as an accomplice.

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Contempt: Conduct that defies the authority or dignity of a court or legislature.

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Discovery: The pretrial phase of a lawsuit during which deposition, interrogatories, and other forms of discovery are conducted.​​​

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Grand Jury: A body of (usually 12-23) people who are chosen to sit permanently for at least a month — and some times a year — and who, in ex parte proceedings, decide whether to issue indictments.

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Gross Sexual Imposition: The act of forcing a person to have nonconsensual sexual contact with someone other than the offender.  

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Hearing: A judicial session, usually open to the public, held for the purpose of deciding issues of fact or law, sometimes with witnesses testifying. 

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Joint Tenancy: A tenancy with two or more co-owners who are not spouses on the date of acquisition and have identical interests in a property with the same right of possession.

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Lien: A legal right or interest that a creditor has in another person's property, lasting usually until a debt or duty that it secures is satisfied.

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Magistrate: The judicial officer with strictly limited jurisdiction and authority, often on the local level and often restricted to criminal cases.​

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Mandamus: A writ issued by a court to compel performance of a particular act by a lower court or a governmental officer or body, usually to correct a prior action or failure to act. — Also termed writ of mandamus; mandate; order.​​

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Pandering: The act or offense of selling or distributing textual or visual material (such as magazines or videotapes) openly advertised to appeal to the recipient's of sexual interest. 

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Personal Recognizance:  The release of a defendant in a criminal case in which the court takes the defendant's word that he or she will appear for a scheduled matter or when told to appear. 

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Petit Jury: A jury (usually consisting of 6 or 12 persons) summoned and empaneled in the trial of a specific case.​​​

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Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO): A state-court order or judgement that relates to alimony, child support, or some other state domestic-relations matter and that (1) recognizes or provides for an alternate payee's right to receive all or part of any benefits due a participant under a pension, profit-sharing, or other retirement benefit plan, (2) otherwise satisfies § 414 on the Internal Revenue Code, and (3) is exempt from ERISA rule prohibiting the assignment of plan benefits.

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Quash: To annul or make void; to terminate.

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Replevin: A lawsuit to repossess personal property wrongfully taken or detained by the defendant, whereby the plaintiff gives security for and holds the property until the court decides who owns it.​​

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Subpoena: A writ or order commanding a person to appear before a court or other tribunal, subject to a penalty for failing to comply.

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