Unless you’ve studied law to degree level, it’s not at all unusual to be unfamiliar with legal terms. In fact, legal jargon can often look like a foreign language.

But we’ve got you covered with our own glossary, so you don’t have to keep turning to Google for answers. It might be a good idea to familiarise yourself with some of them if you’re considering starting a legal case.

Glossary

Adjudication - A type of Alternative Dispute Resolution (see below). This is compulsory in the construction industry. Typically, the parties involved in adjudication are part of a construction contract they cannot get out of, designed to protect cash flow during construction. Read our guidance article on ADR here.

Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) - Typically refers to a wide range of processes that enable disagreeing parties to resolve the problem without going to court. Read our guidance article on ADR here.

Arbitration - A type of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). Involves appointing an independent third-party arbitrator (usually from the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators) to make a decision about your complaint. Read our guidance article on ADR here.

Attorney - A legal professional that represents clients in court.

Barrister - A legal professional that works for a solicitor and appears in court to represent a client. Not to be confused with a solicitor or judge.

Campaign - An organised plan of action that aims to bring about social or political change.

Case group - A group of individuals that share the same problem and take collective action.

Class action - This term refers to when an individual takes legal action on behalf of a group and is commonplace in the US legal system. If the case is won, everyone affected by the issue can claim their share of the compensation without registering their claim prior to the court case.

Claim - A legal claim is a victim’s formal demand to a court for something, such as compensation.

Claimant - A person who makes a claim.

Collective redress - A term used within the European Union to refer to group claims. The EU is currently looking to allow EU-wide consumer collective redress to enable everyone in the union to benefit from a fair system.

Compensation - a reward (usually monetary) for someone who has suffered loss, damage, or injury.

Conciliation - A type of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). Involves two conflicting parties meeting with a neutral third party called a conciliator to resolve their issues. Read our guidance article on ADR here.

Collective conciliation - A type of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). Involves an employer and a group of employees working with a conciliator to settle the dispute and come to an agreement. Read our guidance article on ADR here.

Defendant - The individual or organisation that have had a claim made against them.

Group litigation order (GLO) - A term often used in English civil law. It refers to a group of individuals with similar claims against the same organisation who come together to take action as a single entity. A single law firm can represent the group, or several different lawyers can represent individual people within the group. GLOs work on an opt-in basis (see below). Read our guidance article on group action here.

Jurisdiction - The official authority of a court to make legal decisions.

Lawyer - An umbrella term for solicitors and barristers.

Litigation - The act of taking legal action (taking a dispute to court).

Litigant - Someone involved in a legal case.

Litigation friend - Someone who represents a child or vulnerable adult (protected party) that is eligible to make a compensation claim. For more information, read our guidance article What is a litigation friend and should I become one? (insert link)

Mediation - A type of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). It is a voluntary and confidential method of resolving conflict between two parties, such as bullying, harassment and communication issues. Read our guidance article on ADR here.

Ombudsman - A free and impartial investigator that looks into and aims to resolve complaints. They provide redress for individuals as well as identify systemic issues and provide feedback to help improve services. Read our guidance article on resolving complaints here.

Opt-out class actions - Class action lawsuits in the US operate on an ‘opt-out’ basis. This enables an individual or a small group of people to represent a whole class of other people who may have been affected by the same issue. The opt-out regime means that it’s not essential for every potential claimant to be identified or known by whoever is pursuing the case - all potential claimants are automatically included before the lawsuit is filed unless they ‘opt-out’. Read our article on class actions here.

Opt-in class actions - Collective actions in the UK mainly operate on an ‘opt-in’ basis. This allows only identified claimants who have made their own claim and are actively involved in the proceedings to be awarded compensation if the case is won. Read our article on class actions here.

Petition - A type of written appeal that people can sign to mark their support of your cause. Gathering lots of signatures from supporters will help you to bring about your intended change. Read our guidance article on petitions here.

Plaintiff - Someone who seeks legal action by starting a legal case against an individual or organisation.

Protected party - An adult deemed unfit to deal with their own affairs due to severe injury or mental incapacity.

Redress - A type of compensation or remedy for injury or damage.

Settlement - An agreement reached between disputing parties.
Solicitor - A legal professional that offers legal advice to clients and defends their interests. Not to be confused with a barrister or judge.

Tribunal - A court of justice.