Before you begin: Essential

Unitwords
0000
The words in this exercise are used a lot in the legal profession, and appear at various stages
throughout this book, so it is important you understand what they mean before you do any
of the other exercises. Match the definitions on the left with the words on the right. Note
that (a) there are more words than definitions, and (b) many of the words on the right can
have more than one meaning, but only one of those meanings is in the column on the left.
Note that many of the words and accompanying expressions in this exercise (and in the
following exercises on business law) are not exclusive to business law, but may also be
applied to other legal and general areas.

1. Money claimed by someone as compensation for harm done. damages

appeal
2. To send someone to prison or to a court.
arrest
3. An adjective referring to a judge or to the law. judicial binding
4. Not guilty of a crime. innocent breach
5. Any act which is not legal. crime case
6. A person who has studied law and can act for people on legal business. charge
lawyer
7. A disagreement or argument between parties. dispute civil
8. A specialist court outside the judicial system which examines special claimant
problems. tribunal commit
9. A set of arguments or facts put forward by one side in a legal contract
proceeding. evidence convict
10. An official who presides over a court. judge court
11. To make an allegation in legal proceedings. appeal crime
12. Someone who is accused of a crime in a criminal case. defendant criminal
13. A person who makes a claim against someone in a civil court. claimant damages
14. An agreement reached after an argument. settlement defence
15. To hold someone legally so as to charge them with a crime. arrest defendant
16. A case which is being heard by a committee, tribunal or court of law. dispute
17. To find that someone is guilty of a crime. prosecute evidence

18. Failure to carry out the terms of an agreement. breach fine

guilty
19. To bring someone to court to answer a criminal charge.
hearing
20. To ask a high law court to change its decision or sentence. appeal
injunction
21. To say that someone has committed a crime.
innocent
22. Having the legal ability to force someone to do something.
judge
23. An adjective referring to the rights and duties of private persons or
judicial
organisations. civil
jury
24. The arguments used when fighting a case. evidence
lawyer
25. A legal agreement between two or more parties. contract
legal
26. An adjective referring to crime. criminal
offence
27. A group of 12 citizens who decide whether or not someone is guilty in
plead
a trial. jury
prosecute
28. A written or spoken statement of facts which helps to prove or disprove
sentence
something at a trial. evidence
settlement
29. To order someone to pay money as a punishment. fine
trial
30. A court order telling someone to stop doing something, or not to do
something. injunction tribunal

1
For reference see Dictionary of Law 4th edition (A & C Black 0-7475-6636-4).
 Unit 0000law 1: Key adjectives
Business
Exercise 1: Look at these sentences and decide if the word in bold is being used correctly in
the context of the sentence (there is an explanation of the word that should be used in
brackets at the end of the sentence). If you think the word is wrong, look for the correct
word. You will find this in one of the other sentences.

1. When pieces of broken glass were found in some of its food products, the company was held
eligible. (responsible for what had happened) accountable (atsakingas)

2. When he was asked to explain his actions, he had no valid explanations. (being acceptable because
it is true or relevant) eligible (tinkamas)

3. The sacked workers claimed unfair dismissal, and demanded a fair and intangible hearing. (not
biased or prejudiced) impartial (nešališkas)

4. Goodwill is one of a company's admissible assets, and as such it cannot be declared as part of the
company's capital. (difficult to value as it does not exist physically) intangible (neaiškus, neapibržtas,
nejauiamas)
5. He was accused of trying to obtain a fiduciary advantage by getting involved in insider dealing.
(financial) pecuniary (piniginis)

6. At the trial, the judge took the unprecedented step of asking the claimant to remove his shirt. (not
having happened before)

7. The company solicitor examined the contract very carefully, and eventually declared it
irreconcilable. (not having any legal effect) void (negaliojantis)

8. The documents produced were not considered relevant to the case and were therefore not
unanimous. (referring to evidence which a court will allow to be used) admissible (leistinas)

9. The magazine was acquitted of libel when the jury returned a gross verdict of 'not guilty'. (where
everyone votes in the same way) unanimous (vienbalsis, vieningas)

10. All shareholders are accountable to vote at the Annual General Meeting. (able or allowed to do
something) valid (galiojantis, veikiantis, turintis gali)

11. The judge accepted that Mr Johnson could not go back to work in the same company because of
void differences of opinion between him and the Directors. (very strong, so that it is not possible for
two sides to reach an agreement) irreconcilable (nesuderinamas)

12. The rail company was accused of impartial negligence by failing to ensure passengers' safety.
(serious) deductible

13. Interest charges are tax deductible so we haven't made as much as we had hoped. (able to be
removed) gross (neatskaiiuojantis mokesi)

14. After a terrible year, during which it lost almost £8 million, the company was declared insolvent.
(not able to pay debts) bankrutavs

15. A company director has a pecuniary duty to the company he works for and the people who work
there. (acting as trustee for someone else, or being in a position of trust) fiduciary (patiktinis, pagrstas
pasitikjimu)

2
For reference see Dictionary of Law 4th edition (A & C Black 0-7475-6636-4).
 Unit 0000
Exercise 2: In this exercise, the first part of each word is already in the sentence. Complete it
with the second part, which you will find in the box.
__atim 앫 __ditional 앫 __dulent 앫 __empt 앫 ___ended 앫 __erial
__gious 앫 __inal 앫 __itual 앫 __ndant 앫 __orate 앫 __pational
__sible 앫 __tiable 앫 __tory 앫 __vent

1. Because of the recent phenomenon of the 'compensation culture', claims for occu____ accidents
have almost doubled in the last ten years. (referring to jobs and work) pational

2. So many complaints about the company's behaviour were reported that a manda____ tory
injunction was imposed ordering them to cease trading. (obligatory or necessary according to the
law or rules)

3. empt
Some special savings accounts are popular with small businesses because the interest paid is ex____
from tax. (not required to pay, or not covered by law)
tiable
4. The terms of the contract are nego____ up to the moment it is signed. (able to be changed by
discussion)
atim
5. The claimant produced a verb____ transcript of the conversation he had had with the defendant.
(in the exact words)
ditional
6. On the claimant's application for summary judgement, the defendant was given uncon____ leave to
defend himself. (with no conditions attached)
dulent
7. The company was accused of making a frau____ insurance claim by exaggerating the value of the
goods it had lost. (not honest, aiming to deceive people for financial gain)

8. sible
Technically we can sue the company for breach of contract, although this is not really a fea____
option. (possible or practical)
ndant
9. New legislation has made Clause 6b of the contract redu____. (no longer needed or valid)
itual
10. Hab____ breaches of safety regulations are being investigated by the Health and Safety Officer.
(doing something repeatedly)
vent
11. When he bought the company, it was barely sol____ but he turned it into one of the most
successful organisations in the country. (having enough money to pay debts)

12. erial
The lawsuit against the organisation was dropped because there was not enough mat____
evidence. (important or relevant)

13. inal
We were expecting to receive a big fine, but in the event we were ordered to pay only nom____
damages. (a very small amount)
orate
14. The issues of corp____ responsibility at local, national and international levels have been receiving a
lot of coverage in the press. (referring to a company)
ended
15. The contract is open-____ although there is an initial probationary period. (with no fixed period, or
with some items not specified)
gious
16. Be careful what you say: some companies are extremely liti____. (very willing to bring a lawsuit
against someone to settle a disagreement)

3
For reference see Dictionary of Law 4th edition (A & C Black 0-7475-6636-4).
 Unit 0000law 2: Key nouns
Business
Look at the dictionary definitions below, decide what each one is describing, then write your
answers in the table on the next page. The first and last letters of each word have already
been put into the table for you.

If you complete the table correctly, you will reveal a word in the shaded vertical strip that can
be used to complete the sentence in the box at the bottom of the next page.

1. A person who is appointed to deal with financial or other matters on behalf of another person. Notaire

2. A licence to trade using a brand name and paying a royalty for it.

3. An official who investigates complaints by the public against government departments or other
large organisations (especially banks, travel companies, and electricity, gas, water and
telecommunications providers). Ombudsman??

4. Somebody who gives a guarantee. Guarantor (garantas)

5. A failure to carry out the terms of an agreement, a contract, etc. Breach (pažeisti, pažeidimas)

6. One of the main conditions of a contract, where one party agrees to what is proposed by the other
party. Also the act of signing a bill of exchange to show that you agree to pay for it.
Perjury
7. The notifiable offence of telling lies when you have made an oath to say what is true in court. (melagingi
parodymai)
8. Somebody who has committed a civil wrong to somebody, entitling the victim to claim damages.

9. A payment made by a person or company to cover the cost of damage or hardship which he / she /
it has caused.

10. An attempt by a third party to make the two sides in an argument agree. Mediation (tarpininkavimas)

11. A document in which a company acknowledges it owes a debt and gives the company's assets as
security.

12. The closing of a company and the selling of its assets. Liquidation (likvidacija)

13. Money claimed by a claimant from a defendant because of harm or damage done, or money
awarded by a court to a claimant as a result of harm suffered by the claimant (Clue: this word has
already appeared elsewhere in this exercise). Damages (žalos, nuostoliai)

14. The legal responsibility for paying someone for loss or damage incurred. Liability (atsakomyb)

15. A failure to give proper care to something, especially a duty or responsibility, with the result that a
person or property is harmed. Negligence (aplaidumas, neatsargumas)

16. The good reputation of a business and its contacts with its customers (for example, the name of
the product it sells or its popular appeal to customers).

17. A court order telling a person or a company to stop doing something, or telling them not to do it
in the first place. Injunction (draudimas)

4
For reference see Dictionary of Law 4th edition (A & C Black 0-7475-6636-4).
 Unit 0000

1 N E

2 F E

3 O N

4 G R

5 B H

6 A E

7 P Y

8 T R

9 C N

10 M N

11 D E

12 L N

13 D S

14 L Y

15 N E

16 G L

17 I N

Use the word in the shaded vertical strip to complete this paragraph.

The company promised us that they would send us the goods by March 31st, but since then
we have discovered that they knew they couldn't get them to us until the end of May. We
lost a lot of money as a result, so we are going to sue them for __________.

Familiarise yourself with the words in this exercise by using them in some of your own
sentences. Don't forget to record any new words and expressions you learn (there is a
vocabulary record sheet on page 64 which you can photocopy as many times as you like
and use to build your own vocabulary 'bank').

5
For reference see Dictionary of Law 4th edition (A & C Black 0-7475-6636-4).
 Unit 0000law 3: Key verbs
Business
Complete the crossword on page 8 by rearranging the jumbled letters in bold in the
sentences below and writing the words and expressions in the appropriate space on the
crossword grid. An explanation of each verb is in brackets at the end of each sentence. Be
careful, as many of the words will need to change their form (for example, to the past simple
or past perfect) to fit correctly in the sentence and into the crossword.

Across:
3. The airline will dineynifm passengers for lost luggage to the value of £500. (to pay for loss or
damage suffered) Indemnify (atlyginti žal)

4. The company ernudketa to provide quality service at a competitive cost. (to promise to do
something) undertake (imtis kažko daryti)

10. The tribunal will udditecaja the claim and award damages where necessary. (to give a judgement
between two parties) adjudicate (sprsti)

12. In order to raise enough money for its new venture, the company decided to diqielatu some of its
assets. (to sell assets or stock to raise cash) liquidate

14. All of our employees are tielent to four weeks' holiday a year. (to have or give someone the right
to do something) entitle (duoti teis, pavadinti)

15. A neutral party was called in to tedaime between the manager and his staff. (to try to make two
sides in an argument come to an agreement) mediate (tarpininkauti)

17. The contract is still being frtad, but we expect it to be ready for signing early next week. (to make a
first rough plan of a document such as a contract) draft (juodraštis)

19. A lot of people were unhappy when he was paintpo to the post of Managing Director. (to choose
someone for a job) appoint (pasirinkti, paskirti)
elapse (prabgti, praslinkti)
20. We must allow sufficient time to sepela before we make a claim. (of time: to pass)

21. The company has been accused of trying to efrudad customers. (to trick someone so as to obtain
money or goods illegally) defraud (apgaudinti)

26. The paper has no right to clodseis the details of our agreement. (to tell details) disclose (parodyti, atskleisti)

28. A court injunction has nab the company from trading in the area. (to forbid something, or make it
illegal) ban

29. Because a new company has taken over, the contract has been dvaatineli. (to make something no
longer valid) Invalidate (anuliuoti, pripažinti negaliojaniu)

31. In view of the inconvenience we have caused, we are willing to vawei all payments due. (to say
that something is not necessary) waive (atsisakyti, nereikalauti)

32. The local authority gatnr the company an interest-free loan to start up the new factory. (to agree
to give someone something, or to allow someone to do something) grant (suteikti, duoti)

6
For reference see Dictionary of Law 4th edition (A & C Black 0-7475-6636-4).
 Unit 0000
Down:
1. The plan has to be fatyir by the board before it can be put into operation. (to approve officially
something that has already been decided) ratify (patvirtinti)

2. After he was accused of insider dealing, his firm was clabstkli by the government. (to put goods,
people or a company on a list of those that you will not deal with) Blacklist

5. Penalties will be applied if you fdaetul on your repayments. (to fail to carry out the terms of a
contract, especially to fail to pay back a debt) default (sipareigojim nevykdymas)

6. When the company was unable to repay the loan, the bank clefeosor on its premises. (to take
possession of a property because the owner cannot repay money he / she has borrowed using the
property as security) foreclose (atimti naudojimo teis)

7. The case might last longer than we expected, because the defendant is uditeps the claim. (to argue
against something; to say that something is not correct) dispute (ginytis)

8. The judge dwraa compensatory damages to the claimant. (to decide the amount of money to be
given to someone) award

9. The company assured us it would do all the work itself, but it accobnsutrt part of the job to a local
firm. (to agree with a company that they will do all or part of the work for a project) subcontract

11. The court was unable to decide whether the patent had been gfriinen. (to make a product in the
same way as another product which has been patented, and not pay royalties)

13. The document has been fcrieyt as a true copy. (to make an official declaration in writing) certify

16. Non-profit organisations will be petmex from tax. (to free someone from having to pay tax) exempt
(neapmokstinamas)
18. The court ordered the company to be ndwi pu (2 words). (to put a company into liquidation)
Wind up
19. The claimant gaelle that the article was an infringement of his copyright. (to state, usually in giving
evidence, that something has happened or is true) allege (tvirtinti, kaltinti)

22. The company did not biead yb (2 words) the terms of the agreement. (to accept a rule or follow a
custom) abide by (laikytis taisykls pvz)

23. On liquidation, the firm's property was stev in the bank. (to transfer to someone the legal
ownership and possession of land or a right) vest (suteikti)

24. We are mical £5,000 as compensation from our suppliers. (to ask for money) claim (reikalauti)

25. Mr and Mrs Douglas' solicitor advised them to ekse an injunction against the magazine in the High
Court. (to ask for or try to do something) seek (siekti, prašyti)

27. Workers are allowed to tkesri in protest against bad working conditions. (to stop working because
there is no agreement with management) strike (streikuoti)

30. The company owns several apartments, which it tel to private tenants. (to allow someone to use a
building in return for money) let

7
For reference see Dictionary of Law 4th edition (A & C Black 0-7475-6636-4).
 Unit 0000
1R 2B

A L

T A
I
C
3I N D E M N I F Y K

Y L
4U N 5D E R T A K E N
I
6F E S
D
7D 8A 9S
O F T
10
A D J U D 11
I C A T E
R I W
E S U B D
A
C P R L C
12
L I Q U I D A T E 13C
O
O 14
E N T I T L E D
T E
S I D T
R
N R T
E
D 15
M 16
E D I A T E
G I
X C
F
17D R A F T E D T Y

E E
M
P 18
W
D D
19
A P P O I N T E D I
L E N
20
E L A P S E 21
D E F R 22
A U D
E B 23V
U
G I E
P
24 25S S
E C D
26
D I 27
S C L O S E E T
A 28
T E B A N N E D
I K
R Y D
I
M
K 29
I N V A 30L I D A T E D
I
31
W A I V E N E
32
G R A N T E D

8
For reference see Dictionary of Law 4th edition (A & C Black 0-7475-6636-4).
 Business law 4: Key expressions
Unit 0000
Complete definitions 1 – 30 with the first part of an appropriate expression from the first
box, and the second part from the second box.

articles… burden… compulsory… confidential… data… employers'… employment…

force… freezing… fundamental… grievance… intellectual… joint…(x2) limited…
memorandum…(x2) obligation… out… power… pre-emption… terms… trade…
unfair… unliquidated… unprofessional… vicarious… winding… without… wrongful…

…and conditions …and several …breach …clause …competition …conduct

…damages …dismissal ...information ...injunction …liability (x3) …liquidation
…majeure …mark …of association (x2) …of attorney …of confidentiality …of court
…of proof …of satisfaction …prejudice …procedure …property …protection
…tribunal …up …venture

1. An official power giving someone the right to act on someone else's behalf in legal matters is called
power of attorney (galiojimas?)
__________.

2. The protecting of information about individuals stored in a computer from being copied or used
data protection (duomen apsauga)
wrongly is called __________.
Without prejudice (nepažeidžiant)
3. __________ is a phrase spoken or written in a letter when attempting to negotiate a settlement
which means that the negotiations cannot be referred to in court or relied upon by the other party if
discussions fail.
Joint venture (bendra imone)
4. A __________ is a business partnership where two or more companies join together as partners for a
limited period.
Force majeure
5. __________ is an expression of French origin that is used for something which happens which is out
of control of the parties who have signed a contract (for example, a war or a storm), and is also
known as an act of God.
grievance procedure (skundo procedra)
6. A __________ refers to the various steps an employee takes if he / she wants to complain about his /
her employers.
articles of association (asociacijos straipsniai)
7. __________ are the contents of a document which regulate the way in which a company's affairs
(such as the appointment of directors or the rights of shareholders) are managed.

8. A section in a company's (number 7 above) which requires any shares offered for sale to be first
pre-emption clause (pirmumo išlyga)
offered to existing shareholders is known as a __________.

9. winding up
When a company is put into liquidation, this is often known as __________.

10. The legal responsibility of an employer when employees are subject to accidents due to negligence
employer's liability (darbdavio atsakomyb)
on the part of an employer is called __________.

11. The legal responsibility of one person for the actions of another person, especially the responsibility
vicarious liability (pakaitin
of an employer for acts committed by an employee in the course of work, is called __________.
limited liability company (ribotos atsakomybs tikrov) atsakomyb)
12. A __________ company is a company where each shareholder is responsible for paying the
company's debts only to the face value of the shares he / she owns.

9
For reference see Dictionary of Law 4th edition (A & C Black 0-7475-6636-4).
 Unit 0000
memorandum of association (steigimo momerandumas)
13. A __________ is a legal document setting up a limited company and giving details of its aims, capital
structure, and registered office.
memorandum of satisfaction (pasitenkinimo momerandumas)
14. A __________ is a document showing that a company has repaid a mortgage or charge.

15. A situation where two or more parties share a single legal responsibility, and each party is also liable
for the whole claim, is called __________ liability.
joint and several liability (solidarioji atsakomyb)
16. When a dispute between two parties is settled before it gets to court, it is known as an out of court settlement
__________
settlement. (neteismin tvarka)

17. When an overseas company (or an individual) cannot access its assets because a court order prevents
freezing injunction (šalydymo sakymas)
it from doing so, this is known as a __________.
unliquidated damages (neatlygintas žalos atlyginimas)
18. __________ are compensatory payments which are not for a fixed amount of money but are
awarded by a court as a matter of discretion depending on the case.

19. The duty to prove that something which has been alleged in court is true is known as the
burden of proof (rodinjimo našta)
__________.

20. Behaviour which is not suitable for a professional person and goes against the code of practice of a
profession is called __________.
unprofessional conduct (neprofesionalus elgesys)

21. confidential information

Facts which are secret and must not be passed on to other people are called __________.

22. A body responsible for hearing work-related complaints as specified by statute is called an
employment tribunal (darbo tribunolas)
__________.
obligation of confidentiality (konfidencialumo sipareigojimas)
23. An __________ is a legally-binding rule that is imposed on the recipient of private or secret
information which states that the recipient should not pass the information on to someone else.

24. The name, design or other feature which identifies a commercial product, has been registered by the
registered trademark (registruotas preks
maker and cannot be used by other makers is called a 'registered __________'.
ženklas)
intellectual property (intelektualin nuosavyb)
25. __________ is something such as a copyright, patent or design which someone has created or
produced that no-one else can legally copy, use or sell.

26. The conditions which have to be carried out as part of a contract, or arrangements which have to be
terms and conditions (terminai ir slygos)
made before a contract is valid, are called __________.

27. The removal of someone from a job for a reason that cannot be justified, and which is in breach of
wrongful dismissal (neteistas atleidimas iš darbo)
contract, is called __________.
unfair competition (nesžininga kokurencija)
28. __________ is an attempt by one company to do better than another company by using methods
such as importing foreign products at very low prices or by wrongly criticising a competitor's
products.
fundamental breach (esminis
29. A failure to carry out an essential or basic term of a contract is known as a pažeidimas)
__________.
compulsory liquidation (priverstinis likvidavimas)
30. __________ is when a court orders a company to close and its assets to be sold.

10
For reference see Dictionary of Law 4th edition (A & C Black 0-7475-6636-4).