Glossary

Concise definitions of legal terms used on the Citizen Media Law Project site. (The glossary is currently a work-in-progress. Please use our contact form to suggest additional terms for this glossary.)

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Click one of the letters above to be taken to a page of all terms beginning with that letter.
s
Secondary meaning search for term

A term used in trademark law to denote when a descriptive trade name or other trademark used in connection with a good or service comes to be uniquely associated in the minds of the public with that particular good or service. When a descriptive trade name or trademark acquires secondary meaning, trademark law protects it against confusingly similar uses by others.

Slander search for term

A defamatory statement, usually made orally, in which damages are not presumed and must be proven by the party suing.

See also: Defamation
Statute search for term

The product of a legislative body (i.e., a law).

Statute of limitations search for term

A statute applying to both civil and criminal cases that requires suit or prosecution within a prescribed period of time following the injury or the date of the crime.

Subpoena search for term

An order to compel an individual or entity to give testimony on a particular subject, often before a court, but sometimes in other proceedings (such as a Congressional inquiry).

See also: Subpoena duces tecum
Subpoena duces tecum search for term

A type of subpoena that requires the witness to produce documentary evidence pertinent to a proceeding. From the Latin duces tecum, meaning "you shall bring with you."

See also: Subpoena
 
 
 
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