Law Library Legal Dictionary – B

Legal Definitions – B

Back Pay – A common remedy for employment violations involving lost wages or benefits. The employer is required to make up for any difference between what an employee was paid and the amount that they should have been paid.

Background Check – The process of researching a person’s history by looking at his criminal records, commercial records and financial records.

Bad Faith – To act with bad faith is to intentionally deceive or defraud someone. A person is deemed to have acted in bad faith if they violate a covenant of good faith and fair dealing.

Bail Bonds – The bail that a bail bondsman posts in exchange for a fee.

Bankruptcy – A legal procedure designed both to protect an individual or a business that cannot meet its financial obligations and to protect the creditors involved. See also: consumer bankruptcy, business bankruptcy, creditors’ rights in bankruptcy

Barter Exchange Network – An organization whose purpose is to facilitate bartering between several different parties.

Battered Person Syndrome – A physical and/or psychological condition that a victim of domestic abuse suffers from as a result of the abuse.

Bigamy – Entering into a new legally-recognized marriage before one’s prior marriage has been dissolved, leaving a person married to two different people at the same time.

Bill of Sale – A written document that confirms the transfer of ownership in a piece of property.

Biometrics – A technology that is able to identify individuals based on their physical characteristics or habits, such as fingerprints or keyboard typing.

Blackmail – Blackmail is the act of threatening to someone that, unless they do as you demand, you will reveal private or damaging information about them.

Blind Plea – A blind plea is a guilty plea without a set sentence. This is different from a standard plea bargain, in which the defense and prosecution agree on a guilty plea, and in exchange, the prosecution recommends a lighter sentence.

Body Cavity Search – A very specific type of police search that involves the search of orifices of the human body.

Bond – Similar to an IOU, it is a debt security held by an entity that has made a loan to a company.

Breach of Contract – A party’s failure to fulfill its duties as required under the contract terms.

Breach of the Peace – The crime of violating a peace law by intentionally disrupting the public in a certain way.

Building Codes – Local or state laws that set standards of construction in buildings to protect the public’s health and safety.

Burglary – The crime of breaking and entering into a building with the intent of committing a felony within, such as robbery or murder.

Business and Commercial Law – An area of law that governs business operations and commercial transactions.

Business Contract – A contract involving a business transaction, such as a licensing agreement or a commercial sales contract. See also: business agreement, commercial law and contracts