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TERM DEFINITION/MEANING

Natural Justice In English law, it is technical terminology for the rule against bias and the right to a
fair hearing.

Negligence A failure to behave with the level of care that someone of ordinary prudence would
have exercised under the same circumstances. The behaviour usually consists of
actions, but can also consist of omissions when there is some duty to act.

Nuisance In English law it is an area of tort law broadly divided into two torts; private
nuisance, where the actions of the defendant are "causing a substantial and
unreasonable interference with a claimant's land or his/her use or enjoyment of that
land", and public nuisance where the defendant's actions "materially affects the
reasonable comfort and convenience of life of a class of Her Majesty's subjects".

Offences against Usually refers to a crime which is committed by direct physical harm or force being
the person applied to another person. They are usually analysed by division into the following
categories: Fatal offences and Sexual offences.

Offences against A category of crime that includes burglary, motor vehicle theft, theft, arson,
Property vandalism and shoplifting. It involves the taking of property or money and does not
include a threat of force or use of force against the victim.

Ombudsman A legal representative, often appointed by a government or organization to
investigate complaints made by individuals in the interest of the citizens or
employees. Usually this is a state official appointed to oversee an investigation of
complaints about improper government activity against citizens.

Precedent In legal systems based on common law, a precedent, or authority, is a principle or
rule established in a previous legal case that is either binding on or persuasive for a
court or other tribunal when deciding subsequent cases with similar issues or facts.

Private Law That part of a civil legal system which focuses on relationships between individuals,
such as the laws of contracts, torts, and obligations.

Privy Council A body that advises the head of state of a nation, typically, but not always, in the
context of a monarchic government.

Public Law That part of law which governs relationships between individuals and the
government, and those relationships between individuals which are of direct concern
to society.
Public law comprises constitutional law, administrative law, tax law, criminal law,
and procedural law. In public law, mandatory rules prevail.

Rule of Law The legal principle that law should govern a nation, as opposed to being governed
by decisions of individual government officials. It implies that every person is subject
to the law, including people who are lawmakers, law enforcement officials, and
judges.

Sentence The punishment assigned to a defendant found guilty by a court, or fixed by law for
a particular offence. (noun)
Declare the punishment decided for an offender. (verb)

CXC A23/U2/17 43