General (not jurisdiction-specific)

An agreement settling a disputed claim in which each side gives up something. Offers to compromise and statements made in compromise negotiations are generally not admissible to prove or disprove the validity or amount of a disputed claim (Fed. R. Evid. 408). In bankruptcy, the court may approve a compromise or settlement on the trustee’s motion, after notice and a hearing (Fed. R. Bankr. P. 9019(a)).

Restoring to a person what was lost, or requiring someone to give up a benefit obtained at another’s expense. In civil law, a person who is unjustly enriched at the expense of another is subject to liability in restitution (Restatement (Third) of Restitution and Unjust Enrichment § 1). In criminal cases, federal law requires courts to order restitution to victims of certain offenses (18 U.S.C. § 3663A).

A person’s actions or failures to act. Conduct can create legal consequences: for example, a contract for the sale of goods may be made in any manner sufficient to show agreement, including conduct by both parties which recognizes the existence of a contract (UCC § 2-204(1)). Lawyers’ conduct is governed by state rules of professional conduct, and courts can sanction misconduct in litigation.

In contract law, the manifestation of willingness to enter into a bargain, so made as to justify another person in understanding that his assent to that bargain is invited and will conclude it (Restatement (Second) of Contracts § 24). An accepted offer can form a contract. In litigation, an offer of judgment under Fed. R. Civ. P. 68 can shift costs, and an offer of proof preserves a claim of error when evidence is excluded (Fed. R. Evid. 103(a)(2)).

A formal written legal document, such as a deed, will, contract or promissory note. In UCC Article 3, “instrument” means a negotiable instrument (UCC § 3-104(b)), and UCC Article 9 has its own broader definition (UCC § 9-102(a)(47)).

A financial institution that accepts deposits and makes loans, chartered either by a state or by the federal government. Deposits at insured banks are protected by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation up to the standard maximum deposit insurance amount of $250,000 per depositor, per insured bank, for each account ownership category (12 U.S.C. § 1821(a)(1)(E)).

A document that creates an organization or grants it rights and powers. Examples include a corporation’s articles of incorporation, a city’s charter under state home-rule laws, and a bank’s charter — national banks are chartered by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and state banks by state banking agencies.

The first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1791, which protect freedoms such as speech, religion and assembly, the right to keep and bear arms, protections against unreasonable searches and seizures, rights of people accused of crimes, and the right to a civil jury trial. The Bill of Rights originally limited only the federal government (Barron v. Baltimore, 32 U.S. (7 Pet.) 243 (1833)); through the Fourteenth Amendment, the Supreme Court has since applied most of its protections to the states.

The Constitution of the United States, which established the federal government, divided power among Congress, the President and the federal courts, and protects individual rights through its text and amendments. It was signed in 1787, ratified by the required nine states in 1788, and took effect in 1789; it has been amended 27 times. It, the federal laws made under it, and treaties are the supreme law of the land (art. VI, cl. 2).

The fundamental law of a state, which establishes the state government and protects rights under state law. A state constitution may protect rights more broadly than the U.S. Constitution, but it cannot conflict with federal law, because the U.S. Constitution, federal laws made under it, and treaties are the supreme law of the land (U.S. Const. art. VI, cl. 2).