Test your basic knowledge |

Paralegal 101

Subject : law
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. Proof that the evidence is what it is said to be.






2. An agreement supported by consideration.






3. Law that regulates how the legal system operates.






4. Used to describe legislation that changes the common law.






5. Consists of the description of events that a witness testifies to under oath in a legal proceeding.






6. An opinion that disagrees with the majority's decision and its reasoning.






7. A group of people - usually 23 - whose function is to determine if probable cause exists to believe that a crime has been committed and that the defendant committed it.






8. A national organization of paralegal programs that promotes high standards for paralegal education.






9. A tangible object or a right or ownership interest.






10. Computer codes that - when clicked on with a mouse - connect the user to other web pages with related information






11. Questions relating to the interpretation or application of the law.






12. Representing someone who is in a position adverse to a prior client.






13. In law - a per curium decision (or opinion) is a ruling issued by an appellate court of multiple judges in which the decision rendered is made by the court (or at least a majoirty of the court) acting collectively and anonymously.






14. The process by which individuals or organizations have their names placed on an official list kept by some private organization or governmental agency.






15. A national voluntary organization of lawyers.






16. In deductive reasoning - the statement of a broad proposition that forms the starting point; in law - the statement of a legal rule that you can find in a statute or court opinion.






17. The party in a case who has initiated an appeal.






18. A pamphlet inserted into the back of a book containing information new since the volume was published.






19. The purpose of the legislature at the time it enacted the statute.






20. Negligence by the plaintiff that contributed to his or her injury. Normally - any finding of contributory negligence acts as a complete bar to a plaintiff's recovery.






21. In a case brief - facts that deal with what happened to the parties before the litigation began.






22. An advance or down payment that is given to engage the services of an attorney.






23. A computerized database that contains key information about the content of documents - such as medical records.






24. The party in a lawsuit against whom an appeal has been filed.






25. The process of using Shepard's citations to check a court citation to see whether there has been any subsequent history or treatment by other court decisions.






26. A decision is reversed when an appellate court overturns or negates the decision of a lower court.






27. In logic - an argument is considered to be valid or sound if the assumption underlying the argument are true.






28. The publication of false statements that harm a person's reputation.






29. The requirement in a legal malpractice case that the plaintiff-client prove that but for the attorney's negligence - the client would have won.






30. A set of standardized jury instructions.






31. The power of a court to force a person to appear before it.






32. Evidence that supports previous testimony but that comes in a different form.






33. An introductory paragraph listing issues to be discussed in the order they are to be discussed.






34. A lawsuit brought by a person as a representative for a group of people who have been similarly injured.






35. Including more than one count in a complaint; the counts do not need to be consistent.






36. A request that the court release the defendant because of the illegality of the incarceration.






37. The questioning of your own witness.






38. A court's power to review statutes to decide if they conform to the federal or a state constitution.






39. A set charge for a specific service - such as drafting a simple will.






40. Someone in court testifying to what someone said out of court for the purpose of establishing the truth of what was said.






41. The power of a court to hear a case.






42. An ADR mechanism whereby a neutral third party assists the parties in reaching a mutually agreeable - voluntary compromise.






43. A decision is affirmed when the litigants appeal the trial court decision and the higher court agrees with what the lower court has done.






44. A defense whereby the defendant offers new evidence to avoid judgment.






45. Being informed of some act done or about to be done.






46. A suspicion based on specific facts; less than probable cause.






47. In a lawsuit the person who is sued; in a criminal case the person who is being charged with a crime.






48. A case listed in Shepard's that cites your case.






49. A statement in a judicial opinion not necessary for the decision of the case.






50. A computer search that identifies every place in which the search term appears in the actual text of the document being searched.