This is a Legal Dictionary for visitor reference. Please click on the letter below to search by alphabet or use the search form to find the term you are looking for.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

failure of consideration - "Failure of consideration" occurs when a contracting party refuses to or is unable to perform its side of a bargain.

Fair Credit Billing Act (FCBA) - Federal law giving rights to consumers when an error occurs on their credit card statement. Consumers have 60 days to report the error after they are mailed the bill. Companies must then correct the mistake within 30 days, and must then correct the error within 90 days or explain why it believes the credit card statement is valid.

Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) - Federal law that requires that creditors refrain from reporting incorrect information to credit bureaus. The law also requires credit bureaus to adopt reasonable procedures for gathering, maintaining and disseminating information and stops credit bureaus from reporting negative information that is older than seven years, except a bankruptcy, which may be reported for ten.

Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) - Federal law guaranteeing worker's minimum right i.e. 40

Fair market value - the value for which a reasonable seller would sell an item of property and for which a reasonable buyer would buy it.

false imprisonment - Intentionally restraining another person against their will without the legal right to do so. Physical force is not necessary; threats or a show of apparent authority are sufficient.

Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) - Federal law requiring employers with 50 or more employees to provide each employee with 12 weeks of unpaid leave during a year's time for the birth of a child, family health needs or illness.

family court - Division of a court that considers only cases having to do with family

Family Law - Those areas of the law pertaining to families, i.e., marriage, divorce, child custody, juvenile, paternity, etc.

fault divorce - Traditional grounds for divorce in which a husband or wife can file on fault grounds for divorce under the theory of marital misconduct i.e. adultery, confinement in prison, cruelty, desertion, physical incapacity and incurable insanity.

Federal Aviation Agency (FAA) - A federal agency which regulates air commerce to promote aviation Administration safety.

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) - A federal agency which investigates all violations of federal investigation laws.

Federal Communications Commission - A federal agency which regulates interstate and foreign commission communications by wire and radio.

federal court - Branch of the United States government that decide cases involving the U.S. Constitution or federal law. Federal courts derive their power directly from the U.S. Constitution.

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) - An agency which insures deposits in banking institutions in the even of financial failure.

Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service - An agency which provides mediators to assist in labor-management disputes.

Federal Register - A daily publication which contains federal administrative rules and regulations.

Federal Supplement - Books which gives the government certain control and power to regulate discharge of pollutants into the nation's waters in an effort to achieve clean waters.

Federal Trade Commission (FTC) - An agency of the Federal government in charge of regulating business practices and enforcing antitrust laws.

Federal Unemployment Tax - A tax levied on employers based on employee wages paid. (FUTA tax)

felony - Serious crime usually carrying a penalty of more than one year in prison, or sometimes, death.

fictitious name - Name, usually used in conducting a business, used by a person that is not his or her real name.

Fiduciary - A person or institution who manages money or property for another and who must exercise a standard care imposed by law, i.e., personal representative or executor of an estate, a trustee, etc.

file - Process of placing a document in the official custody of the clerk of the court to enter into the files or records of a case.

filing fee - Fee charged by the court or any public entity to accept a document for processing.

Finding - Formal conclusion by a judge or regulatory agency on issues of fact. Also, a conclusion by a jury regarding a fact.

fitness - Ability of a prospective adoptive parent to provide for the best interests of a child.

fixed rate mortgage - Mortgage loan with a constant interest rate that remains the same over the length of the loan.

Food and Drug Administration (FDA) - A federal agency which sets safety and quality standards for food, drugs, cosmetics, and household substances.

forbearance - Voluntarily refraining from enforcing a legal right or any other right.

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