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plea bargaining

(Encyclopedia)plea bargaining, negotiation in which a defendant agrees to plead guilty to a criminal charge in exchange for concessions by the prosecutor (representing the state). The defendant waives the right to ...

Ribičič, Mitja

(Encyclopedia)Ribičič, Mitja mēˈtyä rĭbĭchĭˈch [key], 1919–2013, Yugoslav politician. A Slovenian, he participated in the revolutionary student movement and joined the Communist party in 1941. He was a m...

executive order

(Encyclopedia)executive order, in the United States, official document initiated and signed by the president containing directives concerning how the executive branch shall carry out its responsibilities under the ...

federation

(Encyclopedia)federation: see federal government. ...

Bradshaw, John

(Encyclopedia)Bradshaw, John, 1602–59, English regicide judge. In 1649 he was made president of the parliamentary commission to try Charles I, other lawyers of greater prominence having refused the position. For ...

court

(Encyclopedia)court, in law, official body charged with administering justice. The term is also applied to the judge or judges who fill the office and to the courtroom itself. Courts come into existence when legal ...

land use

(Encyclopedia)land use, exploitation of land for agricultural, industrial, residential, recreational, or other purposes. Because the United States historically has a laissez-faire attitude toward land use, the land...

Herzog, Roman

(Encyclopedia)Herzog, Roman, 1934–2017, German political leader and legal scholar. After receiving his doctorate in law from Ludwig Maximilian Univ., Munich (1958), he taught there, at the Free Univ. of Berlin (1...

Education, United States Department of

(Encyclopedia)Education, United States Department of, executive department of the federal government responsible for advising on educational plans and policies, providing assistance for education, and carrying out ...

excess profits tax

(Encyclopedia)excess profits tax, levy on any profit above a standard level. Chiefly a wartime phenomenon, it is intended to increase revenue during periods of distress and to prevent businessmen from taking unfair...