Wobbler
The word "wobbler" might make you think of someone doing the popular line dance at a wedding. In legal contexts, a wobbler is a case that teeters on the edge of being a crime and a misdemeanor.
Recess
For most people, recess conjures memories of playing outside in between classes in elementary school. In the legal world, recess refers to a break in a trial or court proceeding.
Tort
Tort doesn't refer to a cake made with ground nuts or breadcrumbs and topped with rich frosting — that's a torte.
Tort is any kind of wrongful act that harms someone else and for which you can be sued for damages.
Upstanding
If someone's an upstanding citizen, they're honorable and respectable. However, in British law, the phrase "be upstanding" is an audience's cue to rise when the judge enters the room.
'Religion loves SEX'
This racy phrase is simply a mnemonic some aspiring lawyers use when studying for the bar.
Laws respecting religion are valid if:
• they serve a secular purpose
• their effect neither advances nor inhibits religion
• and they don't result in "excessive government entanglement" with religion
Therefor
No, this isn't a misspelled version of "therefore." Without the final e, "therefor" is a fancy way to say "for this" or "for that." Legal Shield gives us the example sentence, "She accepted the delivery and provided payment therefor."
If it seems like a clunky and unnecessary word, that's because it probably is. Legal Shield says you'll rarely see it outside of legal contracts.
Administratrix, executrix, prosecutrix, and testatrix
Fluent speakers of legalese often throw around these unusual feminine forms for common words like administrator or prosecutor.
But you're better off avoiding using these words altogether. As legalwriting.net wrote, "Kill them off now. They're sexist, archaic, and hard to pronounce."
