Child pornography is the visual representation of minors under the age of 18 engaged in sexual activity or the visual representation of minors engaging in lewd or erotic behavior designed to arouse the viewer's sexual interest. However, the Supreme Court drew the line with so-called "virtual" depictions of child pornography. In 1996 Congress passed the Child Pornography Preven…
A payment that a noncustodial parent makes as a contribution to the costs of raising her or his child. In the mid-1990s, as never before, child support became a topic of urgent U.S. national discussion. The system that awards and enforces child support was declared inadequate by state and federal policy makers. Failures in the system were blamed for child poverty rates, long-term dependence on gov…
The CDF has taken a stand against cutting federal programs that benefit poor children. Leading its list are the Head Start and Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) nutrition programs. Although viewed as a liberal organization, it has blasted presidential administrations from Jimmy Carter's to George H.W. Bush's whenever budgets have been threatened. It has attacked social spending cuts…
The opportunity for children to participate in political and legal decisions that affect them; in a broad sense, the rights of children to live free from hunger, abuse, neglect, and other inhumane conditions. The issue of children's rights is poorly defined in legislation and by the courts, partly because U.S. society as a whole has not decided how much autonomy to grant children. Although …
Anti-Chinese sentiment in the United States began during the 1850s' Gold Rush, which eclipsed a period of great poverty in China. Chinese laborers flocked to California, where they soon became an exploited workforce because even the meager wages they earned in California represented far more than they could have earned in their homeland. By the 1870s, clear resentment existed among American…
Daniel Chipman was born October 22, 1765, in Salisbury, Connecticut. He graduated from Dartmouth College in 1788, pursued legal studies, and was admitted to the Vermont bar in 1790. In 1794 Chipman relocated to Middlebury, Vermont, where he established a successful legal practice and acted as counselor until 1819. In 1797 he became state attorney for Addison County, performing these duties until 1…
A distinguished congresswoman, scholar, and African American spokeswoman, Shirley Chisholm was the first black woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. A dynamic public speaker who boldly challenged traditional politics, "Fighting Shirley Chisholm," as she called herself during her first congressional campaign, championed liberal legislation from her seat in the House begi…
Joseph Hodges Choate was a popular lawyer in New York in the late 1800s. Choate distinguished himself by his exceptional career before the bar, his accomplishments as ambassador to the Court of St. James's (an ambassador to England), his dedication to public service, and his sharp wit and clever after-dinner speeches. Joseph H. Choate. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS eventually charged Tweed wi…
The Christian Coalition is a nonprofit organization that serves as a powerful lobby for politically conservative causes. Under federal tax law, the organization is permitted to lobby for political issues but cannot endorse political candidates. The Christian Coalition has primarily sought the support of born-again evangelical Christians, but since 1996 it has attempted to build alliances with Roma…
In 1993, CLS backed passage of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), 42 U.S.C.A. §§ 2000bb, et seq., a response to the 1990 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Employment Division, Department of Human Resources v. Smith, 494 U.S. 872, 110 S. Ct. 1595, 108 L. Ed. 2d 876. Smith upheld a denial of unemployment benefits to Native Americans who had been fired from their jobs for using …
Information and testimony presented by a party in a civil or criminal action that permit conclusions that indirectly establish the existence or nonexistence of a fact or event that the party seeks to prove. The following examples illustrate the difference between direct and circumstantial evidence: If John testifies that he saw Tom raise a gun and fire it at Ann and that Ann then fell to the groun…
A paper commonly used in various courts—such as a probate, matrimonial, or traffic court—that is served upon an individual to notify him or her that he or she is required to appear at a specific time and place. Reference to a legal authority—such as a case, constitution, or treatise—where particular information may be found. Cases are published in a series of books call…
The Fourteenth Amendment, through the inclusion of the phrase "all persons," was specifically enacted in 1868 specifically to grant citizenship to former slaves. Since 1924, it has been judicially interpreted to include American Indians. U.S. citizenship does not divest an Indian of tribal citizenship but, rather, coexists with it. The Fourteenth Amendment does not, however, make chi…
Civil death is provided for by statute in some states. Most civil death statutes apply only to offenders who have been sentenced to a life term. …
A symbolic, non-violent violation of the law, done deliberately in protest against some form of perceived injustice. Mere dissent, protest, or disobedience of the law does not qualify. The act must be nonviolent, open and visible, illegal, performed for the moral purpose of protesting an injustice, and done with the expectation of being punished. …
In France, the civil law is set forth in the comprehensive French Civil Code of 1804, also known as the Code Napoléon. France exported this legal system to the New World when it settled Louisiana in 1712. When the French ceded Louisiana to Spain in 1762, the new Spanish governor replaced French civil law with Spanish civil law. France regained control of the territory in 1803 and the United…
The methods, procedures, and practices used in civil cases. Generally, criminal trials are used by the government to protect and provide relief to the general public by attempting to punish an individual. Civil trials can be used by anyone to enforce, redress, or protect their legal rights through court orders and monetary awards. The two types of trials are very different in character and thus ha…
Personal liberties that belong to an individual, owing to his or her status as a citizen or resident of a particular country or community. One effect of legislation and judicial decisions concerning civil rights has been an increase in the number of women in what were traditionally male jobs. AP/WIDE WORLD PHOTOS the people in other states in favor of its own citizens. …
Federal legislation enacted by Congress over the course of a century beginning with the post-Civil War era that implemented and extended the fundamental guarantees of the Constitution to all citizens of the United States, regardless of their race, color, age, or religion. The Civil Rights Act of 1991 granted to victims of unlawful discrimination the right to seek money damages, jury trials, and ba…
The designation given to government employment for which a person qualifies on the basis of merit rather than political patronage or personal favor. …
Combatants loyal to President Charles Taylor gather in Monrovia, Liberia, during a July 2003 ceasefire in that nation's civil war. AP/WIDE WORLD PHOTOS …
Civiletti was born July 17, 1935, in Peekskill, New York. He received a bachelor of arts degree from Johns Hopkins University in 1957 and a law degree from the University of Maryland in 1961. He served from 1961 to 1962 as clerk to William Calvin Chesnut, a U.S. district judge for Maryland. From 1962 to 1964, he worked as assistant U.S. attorney in Baltimore. Civiletti then turned to private pract…
A municipal body composed of citizen representatives charged with the investigation of complaints by members of the public concerning misconduct by police officers. Such bodies may be independent agencies or part of a law enforcement agency. Generally, the power of a civilian review board is restricted to reviewing an already completed internal police investigation, and commenting on it to the Chi…
The abbreviation for Corpus Juris Secundum, which is a comprehensive encyclopedia of the principles of American law. The main body of text discusses the general principles of the title. It is supported by footnotes that contain citations to relevant decisions that are reported in the various digests and reporters. A brief statement of the case is sometimes included in the footnote. Each volume of …
Clark was born in Oakland, California, on August 31, 1953, to Abraham Kleks and Rozlyn Mazur Kleks. In their strict orthodox Jewish household academic achievement took priority. Clark and her brother studied heavily and took classes in Hebrew twice a week. Clark's passion was drama: she studied ballet; took lead roles in high school plays; and later, as a student at the University of Califo…
Family political connections served Clark throughout his career. Help in launching his career came from two influential Texas politicians, Senator Tom Connally and Representative Tom Clark. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS Sam Rayburn. With Connally's help, Clark left private practice in 1927 to become the civil district attorney of Dallas County. He had a perfect prosecution record in his five …
Ramsey Clark. AP/WIDE WORLD PHOTOS 1985 while aboard the hijacked Achille Lauro (Klinghoffer v. SNC Achille Lauro, 816 F. Supp. 930 [S.D.N.Y. 1993]). Clark has represented clients who were arrested while engaging in acts of civil disobedience including a group of people who protested at a General Electric plant in Pennsylvania where parts of Minuteman nuclear missiles were manufactured (Co…
Clarke was born in Lisbon, Ohio, on September 18, 1857. His father, John Clarke, Sr., was an Irish Protestant who immigrated to Lisbon in 1830 and became a successful lawyer and judge. Clarke attended Western Reserve College in Hudson, Ohio, graduating Phi Beta Kappa in 1877 and receiving a master of arts degree in 1880. After college Clarke returned to Lisbon to study law under his father'…
A lawsuit that allows a large number of people with a common interest in a matter to sue or be sued as a group. Initially, a class action could be brought only in equity cases, disputes in which the parties did not necessarily seek monetary damages but instead might desire some other type of relief. The adoption of Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure in 1938 broadened the scope of the …
In 1799, Clay married the socially prominent Lucretia Hart. Clay and his wife eventually had eleven children, and great tragedy. All six daughters and one son died at a young age. Brief service in Washington, D.C., whetted Clay's appetite for a national political career. Henry Clay. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS In 1820 Clay helped bring about the Missouri Compromise. This was a federal respo…
Clayton was born February 10, 1857, in Barbour County, Alabama. He was a graduate of the University of Alabama, where he received a bachelor of arts degree in 1877 and a bachelor of laws degree in 1878. After establishing a law firm in Clayton, Alabama, in 1878, Clayton relocated his practice to Eufaula, Alabama, in 1880, and practiced there until 1914. From 1890 to 1891, Clayton participated in t…
John Middleton Clayton achieved prominence as a U.S. senator and as a drafter of the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty. John Middleton Clayton. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS In 1829 Clayton entered the federal political system and represented Delaware in the U.S. Senate until 1836. During his tenure, he served on the Judiciary Committee and directed an inquiry concerning scandalous activities in the U.S. Post O…
A standard applied by a jury or by a judge in a nonjury trial to measure the probability of the truthfulness of particular facts alleged during a civil lawsuit. The standard of clear and convincing proof—also known as "clear and convincing evidence"; "clear, convincing, and satisfactory"; "clear, cognizant, and convincing"; and "clear, unequi…
Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., writing for a unanimous Court, stated that speech could be punished if "the words are used in such circumstances and of such a nature as to create a clear and present danger that they will bring about the substantive evils that Congress has a right to prevent." According to Holmes, the leaflets in Schenck were printed during wartime with the intent …
Leroy Eldridge Cleaver was born August 3, 1935, in Wabbaseka, Arkansas. When he was still young, the family moved to Phoenix, and then to the Watts section of Los Angeles. While in Los Angeles during his teenage years, Cleaver was arrested for bicycle theft and for selling marijuana, and was sent to two different reformatories. In 1954, he was again arrested for dealing marijuana and was sentenced…
Leniency or mercy. A power given to a public official, such as a governor or the president, to in some way lower or moderate the harshness of punishment imposed upon a prisoner. …
A breach of the duty owed by a member of the clergy (e.g., trust, loyalty, confidentiality, guidance) that results in harm or loss to his or her parishioner. A claim for clergy malpractice asserts that a member of the clergy should be held liable for professional misconduct or an unreasonable lack of competence in his or her capacity as a religious leader and counselor. One of the earlier claims f…
From 1863 to 1866 Cleveland performed the duties of assistant district attorney of Erie County, New York, and, four years later, served as sheriff for three years. He entered politics in 1881 with his election as mayor of Buffalo and gained public attention with his forceful policy against corruption in the Buffalo government. In 1882 he became governor of New York and, for the next two years…
A person who employs or retains an attorney to represent him or her in any legal business; to assist, to counsel, and to defend the individual in legal proceedings; and to appear on his or her behalf in court. …
State funds that compensate clients of attorneys who have stolen their money. Monies for these funds come from attorney registration and bar association fees. A key feature of client security funds is the funding mechanism: a portion of an attorney's annual registration or bar association fee is allocated to the fund. A victim of misappropriation files a claim with a client security board, …
Clifford was born on December 25, 1906, in Fort Scott, Kansas, and spent his childhood in St. Louis. He entered Washington University, in St. Louis, in September 1923. In the fall of 1925, after two years as an undergraduate, he entered the university's law school. He received his law degree in 1928 and practiced law in St. Louis until entering the navy in 1944. Clifford had been associated…
Clifford was born August 18, 1803, in Rumney, New Hampshire, the oldest child and only son in a family with seven children. His English ancestors had moved to the United States in 1644. As a child he worked on his family's small farm in New Hampshire. Although his parents did not encourage him to attend school he was Nathan Clifford. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS able to receive some educatio…
Hillary Rodham Clinton. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS the Arkansas Education Standards Committee as well as holding other official posts. In 1992, Clinton campaigned for her husband for president. Her speeches on domestic issues made clear to voters nationwide what voters in Arkansas already knew: She was her husband's political and intellectual equal and not merely the a spouse along for the…
Bill Clinton. THE WHITE HOUSE Clinton was born William Jefferson Blythe IV on August 19, 1946, in Hope, Arkansas. His father, William Jefferson Blythe III, died in a car accident before the future president was born, and his mother, Virginia Cassidy Blythe, married Roger Clinton four years after Blythe's death. When Clinton was seven years old, the family moved to Hot Springs, Arkan…
A shop in which persons are required to join a particular union as a precondition to employment and to remain union members for the duration of their employment. Among the workers' rights legalized by the NLRA was the right to enter into a "closed shop" agreement. It differs from a union shop, in which all workers, once employed, must become union members within a specified pe…
The final transaction between a buyer and seller of real property. At the closing, all agreements between buyer and seller are finalized, documents are signed and exchanged, money passes to the seller, and title to the property passes to the buyer. Closings generally take place at the office of the title company, which issues title insurance to both buyer and lender. This insurance is issued after…
The final factual and legal argument made by each attorney on all sides of a case in a trial prior to a verdict or judgment. In an age when jury consultants warn about short attention spans, contemporary attorneys shy away from arch rhetoric. Most lawyers want to reach the jury's emotions through plain, but pointed, speech. Rhetorical questions are still used powerfully; quotations from lit…
An organization composed of people who voluntarily meet on a regular basis for a mutual purpose other than educational, religious, charitable, or financial pursuits. A club is any kind of group that has members who meet for a social, literary, or political purpose, such as health clubs, country clubs, book clubs, and women's associations. The term club is not a legal term per se, but a grou…