Skip to main content

Featured

  InglesLegal | Week 1 — September 2026 Legal English Vocabulary: Essential Civil Litigation Terms Welcome back to IngLesLegal ! Each week we dig into the legal English you need to work confidently at an international firm. This week we open the month with twenty foundational civil litigation terms — the words you'll encounter in any complaint, answer, or judgment written in English. For each term, you'll find: the meaning, English synonyms, the corresponding Spanish term, the branches of law where it's most commonly used, and a real example. 1. Plaintiff Meaning: the person or party who initiates a lawsuit, alleging harm and seeking a remedy from the court. English synonyms: claimant (more common in the UK), complainant , petitioner (in certain proceedings). Spanish equivalent: demandante (also: actor , accionante , parte actora ). Law branches: civil law, procedural law, tort law, labor law. Example: "The plaintiff filed a complaint alleging b...
Post a Comment
Read more

IngLesLegal | Week 4 — September 2026

Legal English Vocabulary: Key Terms in Contract and Corporate Law

We close out the month with a second vocabulary set, this time focused on contract and corporate law — the ground much of transactional work at international firms is built on. If your goal is to work in M&A, finance, or commercial contracts, these eight terms come up daily.

1. Indemnification

  • Meaning: a contractual obligation of one party to compensate the other for losses, damages, or liabilities arising from specified events.
  • English synonyms: indemnity, hold harmless obligation.
  • Spanish equivalent: indemnización / cláusula de indemnidad (also: resarcimiento, cláusula de mantener indemne).
  • Law branches: contract law, corporate law, insurance law.
  • Example: “The seller agreed to indemnify the buyer against any third-party claims.”

2. Waiver

  • Meaning: the voluntary and express (or sometimes implied) relinquishment of a right or claim.
  • English synonyms: relinquishment, forfeiture (in some contexts).
  • Spanish equivalent: renuncia (de derechos) (also: dispensa, abdicación de un derecho).
  • Law branches: contract law, procedural law, labor law.
  • Example: “By signing the waiver, the employee gave up the right to sue.”

3. Covenant

  • Meaning: a formal promise or obligation contained in a contract, commonly used in financing or real estate agreements.
  • English synonyms: contractual obligation, binding promise.
  • Spanish equivalent: pacto / cláusula de compromiso / obligación contractual (also: estipulación, compromiso contractual).
  • Law branches: contract law, finance/lending law, real estate law.
  • Example: “The loan agreement included a covenant restricting additional debt.”

4. Warranty

  • Meaning: a contractual statement or guarantee regarding the quality, condition, or truthfulness of a fact, whose breach gives rise to liability.
  • English synonyms: guarantee, assurance.
  • Spanish equivalent: garantía (contractual) (also: aseguramiento contractual, declaración garantizada).
  • Law branches: contract law, commercial law, consumer law.
  • Example: “The manufacturer provided a two-year warranty on the equipment.”

5. Consideration

  • Meaning: under common law, something of value that each party brings to a contract, essential to its validity — something given in exchange for a promise.
  • English synonyms: valuable consideration, bargained-for exchange.
  • Spanish equivalent: contraprestación (also: causa onerosa — an analogous concept in civil law, prestación recíproca).
  • Law branches: contract law (common law), commercial law.
  • Example: “For the contract to be valid, there must be consideration on both sides.”

6. Arbitration

  • Meaning: an alternative dispute resolution method in which the parties submit their dispute to one or more arbitrators, whose decision (an award) is binding.
  • English synonyms: a specific form of alternative dispute resolution (ADR).
  • Spanish equivalent: arbitraje (also: procedimiento arbitral).
  • Law branches: international commercial law, corporate law, labor law.
  • Example: “The contract includes an arbitration clause requiring disputes to be resolved in London.”

7. Jurisdiction

  • Meaning: the legal authority of a court to hear and decide a given case.
  • English synonyms: legal authority.
  • Spanish equivalent: jurisdicción / competencia (also: potestad jurisdiccional, fuero competente).
  • Law branches: procedural law, private international law, constitutional law.
  • Example: “The court dismissed the case for lack of jurisdiction.”

8. Discovery

  • Meaning: the pre-trial stage in which the parties exchange information and evidence relevant to the case.
  • English synonyms: pre-trial disclosure, evidence exchange.
  • Spanish equivalent: exhibición de pruebas / etapa de descubrimiento probatorio (also: fase probatoria — an analogous, though not identical, concept in civil-law systems).
  • Law branches: civil procedure, commercial and international litigation.
  • Example: “During discovery, both parties must exchange relevant documents.”

Tip of the week: terms like consideration or discovery have no exact equivalent in Latin American civil-law systems — they’re concepts native to common law. Understanding them deeply (not just translating them) is exactly what will set you apart when working with clients or partners from English-speaking firms.

That wraps up September. See you in October with new vocabulary, new expressions, and another motion to break down!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular Posts