IngLesLegal | Week 2 — September 2026

Legal English Expressions Every Lawyer Should Know

This week we move past single words to focus on full expressions — the fixed combinations that English-speaking lawyers use every day and that rarely translate word for word. Mastering these is what separates “speaking English” from “sounding like a native lawyer.”

For each expression: meaning, equivalent English expressions, the corresponding Spanish term, the law branches where it’s used, and an example.

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1. To file a lawsuit

• Meaning: to formally initiate a legal proceeding by submitting a complaint to a court.
• Equivalent English expressions: to bring a lawsuit, to initiate legal action, to sue someone.
• Spanish equivalent: presentar una demanda / entablar una demanda (also: interponer una demanda, accionar judicialmente).
• Law branches: procedural law, civil law, labor law.
• Example: “She decided to file a lawsuit against her former employer.”

2. To be held liable

• Meaning: to be judicially declared responsible for harm, a breach, or a wrongful act.
• Equivalent English expressions: to be found liable, to be deemed responsible.
• Spanish equivalent: ser considerado/declarado responsable (also: responder legalmente, ser hallado responsable).
• Law branches: civil law, corporate law, tort law.
• Example: “The manufacturer was held liable for the injuries caused by the defect.”

3. To enter into a contract

• Meaning: to formalize a binding agreement between two or more parties.
• Equivalent English expressions: to execute a contract, to conclude an agreement.
• Spanish equivalent: celebrar un contrato / suscribir un contrato (also: perfeccionar un contrato, contraer obligaciones contractuales).
• Law branches: contract law, corporate law, commercial law.
• Example: “The two companies entered into a joint venture agreement.”

4. Beyond a reasonable doubt

• Meaning: the highest standard of proof, used in criminal matters, requiring near-absolute certainty of the defendant’s guilt.
• Equivalent English expressions: to a moral certainty.
• Spanish equivalent: más allá de toda duda razonable (also: con certeza plena, sin duda razonable).
• Law branches: criminal law.
• Example: “The prosecution must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.”

5. To be in breach of contract

• Meaning: to have failed to perform one or more obligations set out in a contract.
• Equivalent English expressions: to breach an agreement, to default on a contract.
• Spanish equivalent: estar en incumplimiento contractual / incumplir un contrato (also: violar un contrato, faltar a lo pactado).
• Law branches: contract law, commercial law.
• Example: “The supplier was in breach of contract for failing to deliver on time.”

6. To serve notice

• Meaning: to formally deliver a legal document (a notice, summons, or complaint) to a party, in accordance with procedural requirements.
• Equivalent English expressions: to give notice, to serve process.
• Spanish equivalent: notificar / emplazar / dar aviso formal (also: practicar la notificación, diligenciar la notificación).
• Law branches: procedural law.
• Example: “The court ordered the plaintiff to serve notice on the defendant within 10 days.”

7. Burden of proof

• Meaning: the obligation of a party to prove before the court the facts it alleges.
• Equivalent English expressions: onus of proof, evidentiary burden.
• Spanish equivalent: carga de la prueba (also: onus probandi).
• Law branches: procedural law, criminal law, civil law.
• Example: “In civil cases, the burden of proof lies with the plaintiff.”

8. Null and void

• Meaning: entirely without legal effect or validity from its inception.
• Equivalent English expressions: invalid, unenforceable, void ab initio.
• Spanish equivalent: nulo y sin efecto / nulo de pleno derecho (also: inválido, ineficaz jurídicamente).
• Law branches: contract law, civil law, corporate law.
• Example: “The court declared the agreement null and void due to fraud.”

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Tip of the week: many of these expressions rely on “light” verbs (to file, to serve, to enter into, to hold) that change meaning depending on the noun they pair with. Memorize them as full chunks, not word by word.

Next week: we take a deep dive into a key procedural motion in the Anglo-American system — the Motion to Dismiss — and compare it with its Latin American counterparts.