making the legal terms make sense
At The Co-operative Legal Services, we speak to you in plain English, so you always know where you stand. However it’s inevitable that the legal process will involve some technical terminology at some point. This Jargon buster will help you understand some of those unavoidable phrases.
- Moving home
- After an accident
- When someone has died
- Writing your will
- Employment
moving home
Completion Date
The date that the contract states ownership of a property passes from the seller to the buyer. This is the day when the seller is obliged to move out of the property and the buyer moves in.
Contract
A written and signed agreement made between the buyer and seller. It will give full details of the property and all of the other terms and conditions of the sale that have been agreed.
A formal document that transfers freehold land or property from the seller to the buyer.
Disbursement
Fees that must be paid to third parties such as Local Authorities (for searches) and Land Registries.
Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)
Part of the Home Information Pack, it rates your home from A to G on how efficiently it uses energy. These must come from an accredited Energy Assessor who visits the property to collect the relevant data and provide the certificate. This data includes the date, construction and location of the house, and relevant fittings such as heating systems, insulation or double-glazing.
Exchange of Contracts
Contracts must formally change hands in order to make them legally binding. That is, each solicitor hands a copy of the signed contract to the other party.
Freehold
A type of land ownership which, in effect, runs forever.
A collection of important information required by law before you are allowed to market your home. For more details see the Home Information Pack page.
Home Condition Report (HCR)
An optional addition to the Home Information Pack, it offers an objective report on the condition of your home. This will help the buyers understand more about the condition of your house, and reduces the chance of something unexpected being discovered later.
Leasehold Property
Property that is occupied under the terms of a lease.
Mortgage Offer
The formal document making an offer of a loan under a mortgage, which will say how much the loan is for, the period and the amount of repayment, and all of the terms and conditions attached to the loan.
Searches
We will ask for Searches from the Local Authority, the Water Authority and a number of other organisations so that we can find out everything possible about a property.
Stamp Duty Land Tax
A tax payable to the Government on the completion of the purchase of a property or land. The amount of duty depends on its purchase price, although there are some areas in England and Wales where no Stamp Duty Land Tax is payable at all.
Back to top
after an accident
Claimant
You – the person bringing the Claim.
Claim Form
A Court document used to issue Court Proceedings against the at-fault third party.
Comprehensive Insurance
Cover provided by your insurer who will repair your vehicle, regardless of who was to blame for the accident.
Contributory Negligence
A percentage of blame that may be alleged against you for partly causing the accident.
Damages
The compensation you may be entitled to receive.
Evidence
What is required to prove any aspect of your
personal claim, such as a medical report to prove your injuries.
Excess
The amount you must contribute towards the cost of repairs to your vehicle if you are insured under a comprehensive policy. Your insurance company will pay the rest. The excess you pay is generally recoverable from the at-fault third party.
Insured Losses
Losses that are covered by your insurance policy, such as repairs to the insured vehicle.
Legal Expense Cover
This may form part of your insurance cover or it may be a separate policy. It covers losses that are not covered by your standard insurance policy, such as personal injury.
Limitation Deadline
If you are over 18, you have three years from the date of the accident to either negotiate the settlement of a claim, or issue a claim form in either the County Court or High Court. If you are under 18 at the time of the accident, you have until your 21st birthday to do this.
Litigation
The name of the legal process once you have issued a Claim form at Court.
Motor Insurers Bureau (MIB)
The MIB considers compensation claims made by victims of drivers who are either uninsured or untraced. They also have a scheme for victims of accidents caused by foreign insured drivers. Find out more at www.mib.org.uk.
Negligence
You must prove the other party owed you a duty of care, was in breach of that duty, and that the breach caused your injury or damage. The injury or loss must also be a foreseeable consequence of the breach. Even if the other party was only partly to blame, you may still be entitled to compensation.
Third Party
This generally refers to the person whom you are claiming against. If you need to issue a Claim form, this person then becomes known as the Defendant.
Third Party Fire & Theft Insurance
Insures you only in the event of a third party making a claim against you, and protects you against the fire or theft of your vehicle.
Uninsured Losses
Losses that are not covered by your insurance policy, such as personal injury, excess, loss of earnings etc.
Back to top
when someone has died
Administrator
If someone dies without making a Will, this is the person the law will appoint to settle the Estate. Usually this is their next of kin.
Estate
The total value of everything a person owns at their death, less any outstanding debts or commitments.
Executor
The person in a Will who is chosen to administer an Estate.
Inheritance Tax
A tax which must be paid to HM Revenue & Customs when the value of a total Estate exceeds a certain amount.
Intestate
A person who dies without having made a Will is said to have died 'Intestate'.
The authority given to Administrators or Executors by the Courts which legally entitles them to manage someone's Estate.
Will
The document in which someone says what should happen to their money and possessions after their death.
Back to top
writing your Will
Beneficiary
Any person or organisation named in your Will to receive a share of your possessions or a gift.
Chattels
These are your personal possessions, such as clothes or furniture that have not already been given in a Will as a specific item or gift.
Codicil
A legal document that you can use to make simple changes to a Will. These follow the same legal formalities as a Will.
Cohabiter
Someone living with another person who is either not married to them, or not in a registered civil partnership with them.
Estate
All your possessions including money and property that are left when you die, after all debts have been taken into account.
Executor
The person or people you appoint to administer your Will and Estate in line with your wishes after your death.
Inheritance Tax
Payable when an Estate is worth over a certain value. Tax rates are subject to change. We can advise you on how this could affect your Will, and help you to plan to reduce the amount you pay.
Intestate
If you die without having made a valid Will, your Estate is subject to the laws of '
Intestacy’.
Legacy
A gift you want to make to an individual, or organisation such as a charity.
Power of Attorney
A legal document in which one person gives another person power to carry out actions on their behalf.
Probate
The legal process whereby Executors obtain confirmation that a Will is valid and they have the necessary authority to carry out the instructions contained in it.
Registered Civil Partnership
A civil partnership is a legal relationship which can be registered by two people of the same sex.
Spouse
A married partner, not a cohabiter.
Testator
You – the person making a Will.
Trust
An arrangement you can make to set aside assets which people only receive or benefit from under specific circumstances, such as them reaching a certain age. Trusts may also be used to protect the value of possessions or investments.
Back to top
ACAS
The Advisory Conciliation and Arbitration Service is a Government-funded public agency providing a conciliation and mediation service. ACAS provide assistance to employees, employers and their representatives to facilitate the settlement of Tribunal claims.
Annual Leave
As an employee or a worker, if you work a five-day week, you are entitled to a minimum of 24 days per year including bank holidays. This will increase to 28 days on 1 April 2009.
Appeal
If you have been dismissed, you should seek to appeal against your dismissal, otherwise this could affect the amount of compensation you receive if your claim is successful.
Claimant
You – the person bringing the Claim.
Discrimination
Direct discrimination is less favourable treatment on one or more of the prohibited grounds (race, sex, disability, age, sexual orientation or religious belief). You must show that your treatment was on those grounds and normally point to a comparator who would have been treated more favourably in the same circumstances. Indirect discrimination occurs for example when your employer applies a provision or practice to all its staff, but that provision or practice disproportionately impacts upon persons of a specific race including yourself.
Employment Tribunal
A special court of law in which most claims relating to employment issues are heard.
ET1
A claim form used to lodge your claim with the Employment Tribunal.
ET3
Your employer’s defence to your claim. The employer has 28 days from receipt of the ET1 (sent to them by the Employment Tribunal) to respond to your claim.
Grievance
A letter to your employer detailing the matters you are complaining of (such as unlawful deduction of wages or a discriminatory act). In order to bring a claim to an Employment Tribunal for most claims (other than those relating to dismissal), you will first need to write to your employer detailing your complaint, then wait 28 days before submitting an ET1.
Limitation
You normally have three months from the date of your dismissal to lodge a claim in the Employment Tribunal. In claims for discrimination that do not relate to a dismissal, you need to have lodged a grievance complaining of the discriminatory act within three months of the date of that act.
Misconduct
This is a potentially fair reason for dismissal if it is conduct so serious that dismissal is justified i.e. gross misconduct. An employer only has to show it had a reasonable belief that you were guilty of the misconduct to dismiss you. However, the employer must carry out an investigation into the alleged misconduct and act reasonably.
Mitigating your Loss
If you are dismissed, you will need to satisfy the Employment Tribunal that you have made all reasonable attempts to find alternative work; including keeping a record of all job applications you have made, a record of any visits to the job centre and if you join an employment agency, a record of the initial appointment and any subsequent job offers.
National Minimum Wage
The minimum amount your employer is obliged to pay you per hour (with effect from 1 October 2007 the minimum wage is £5.52 an hour for workers aged 22 and over).
Notice Pay
You are usually entitled to receive notice pay if your employer terminates your contract. The minimum period of notice after one month of service is one week for each complete year of service, to a maximum of 12 weeks for 12 years of service. Your employer may pay you in lieu of notice (PILON), which means that your notice is paid to you as an alternative to being given your full notice.
Respondent
Usually your employer – the person who will respond to your claim. If you are bringing a complaint of discrimination, this can also be a named individual who would normally be the alleged perpetrator of the discrimination.
Unlawful deduction from wages
If your employer holds back your pay for no reason, you may be able to bring a claim. You would first need to raise a grievance with your employer setting out your complaint.
Back to top