Difficult Words and Terms in Legal Transcription

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By Beth Worthy for GMR Transcription

No doubt, one of the things that makes legal language so difficult are the unusual words and terms. Some legal terms such as-judge, court, interrogation etc. are relatively well known, where others are a complete mystery to non-professionals. Legal writings also tend to consist of very long sentences, sometimes hundreds of words in length. Master these words and make transcription a breeze!

Here’s some difficult legal words and terms. Without knowing these, transcribing legal documents will be almost impossible.

  1. Arbitration – A method of alternative dispute resolution in which the disputing parties agrees to abide by the decision of an arbitrator.

  2. Assignment – The transfer of legal rights, from one person to another.

  3. Bankruptcy – This is a process governed by the federal law to help people, when they cannot or will not pay their bills.

  4. Bifurcation – Splitting a trial into two parts: a liability phase and a penalty phase.

  5. Certiorari – It refers to the order of a court so that it can review the decision and proceedings in the lower court.

  6. Deed – A written legal document that describes a piece of property and outlines its boundaries.

  7. Defamation – The publication of the statement that injures a person’s reputation.

  8. Deposition – It is a process in which a witness testifies under oath, before trial.

  9. Escrow – The deed of a property will be in escrow( in pending), until the completion of the real estate transaction.

  10. Foreclosure – When a borrower cannot repay a loan and the lender seeks to sell the property.

  11. Immunity – Exemption from a legal duty or penalty.

  12. Implied warranty – A guarantee imposed by law in a sale.

  13. Intestate – To die without a will.

  14. Plaintiff – The person who initiates a lawsuit.

  15. Pro se – A person who represents himself in court alone without the help of the lawyer.

  16. Quash – To nullify or declare invalid.

  17. Slander – Defamatory oral statements and gestures

  18. Subpoena – An order compelling a person to appear in court or produce documents.

  19. Suvoir Dire – Means speak the truth.

1 thought on “Difficult Words and Terms in Legal Transcription”

  1. Mara

    You can also use AutoCorrect if you work with Word. I do more medical transcription and have abbreviations set up for our most common medical terms. e.g., rd for radiculopathy and rl for radiology. I added the AutoCorrect Options… button to the ribbon for easy access to this feature.

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