The Law Handbook 2024

1156 Glossary remains valid even when that person is no longer mentally competent. The power applies to personal or financial matters or both. See also power of attorney ; supportive attorney . enforce  To make people obey a law or the terms of an agreement, using police powers or court orders. enforcement review A request you can make to Fines Victoria that a fine be resolved without you paying it. It can be made only after a fine has been registered by an enforcement agency with Fines Victoria. entrapment  Action by a law enforcement officer that tricks or encourages someone to commit an offence that they would not otherwise have committed. equitable estoppel  See estoppel . equity  (1) Fairness and justice. (2) A right to property that the court will recognise even though it does not amount to full legal ownership. (3) A set of legal rules that aims to reduce any harshness that would result from strict application of the law. estate  All the property a person has, including real property and personal property . It is often used to describe property belonging to someone who has died, or the property of a bankrupt. estoppel  (1) In general, not being permitted to make (being stopped from making) a particular argument or claim in court. (2) Equitable estoppel: stopping someone going back on what they did or said they would do, when what they said has been relied on by another person who would be disadvantaged if the situation changed. eviction  The lawful removal of a tenant from a property. If a tenant who has been lawfully told to leave refuses to leave, the owner can take possession back by asking a court to issue an order. The order can then be enforced by the Sheriff’s Office. evidence  Material presented to a court to prove or disprove a fact. It can include what witnesses say as well as documents and other objects. ex gratia Done as a favour, without any legal obligation to do so. ex parte An application to a court made by one party only, where the other party is not present or does not yet know about the court action. examination in chief  An party’s questioning of their own witness in a court case. Questioning of the other side’s witness is called cross-examination . excess  The amount a person does not get back from the insurer when they make a claim on their insurance. For example, if a car is insured for an agreed value of $10 000 with an excess of $1000, the insurer will pay only $9000 on a claim if the car is written off. exclusion clause  A term in a contract which tries to exclude rights or avoid liabilities. It is also sometimes called a ‘limitation clause’. Many of these clauses are void , especially in consumer contracts. executor  The person named in a will as the one who must ensure that the deceased person’s intentions, as stated in the will, are carried out. exemplary damages  A court order that a wrongdoer pay the victim a larger amount of damages than would be needed just to compensate them for their loss. Its purpose is to punish the wrongdoer and make an example of them. See also general damages ; special damages . exhibit  A document or thing that is provided as evidence in a court case or referred to in a sworn statement. For example, a gun might be produced as an exhibit in a criminal case, and a bank statement might be produced in a civil case. ex-nuptial  Out of marriage; illegitimate. Used to describe a child born of the couple. express warranty  A verbal or written promise made about a product when it is offered for sale, which would naturally encourage people to buy the goods (for example, a sales person saying a toaster will last for six years). Breach of an express warranty can give rise to a right to sue for damages . expulsion  The deportation of a non-citizen from a country, or the permanent removal of a person from an organisation or place, especially the expulsion of a student from school. Compare suspension . extradition  The process of allowing an accused person in one country to be taken into custody and sent for trial in another country where it is alleged they committed an offence. When a person is to be extradited, police in the country of residence take them into custody and hand them over to law enforcement officers from the country where the offence was committed. F fair dealing  Legitimate use or reproduction of copyright material by someone other than the copyright owner, for specific purposes (parody or satire, study or research, criticism or review, or reporting the news). Not to be confused with the US ‘fair use’ which does not apply in Australia (allowing any copyright material to be used without the copyright owner’s consent if the use is ‘fair’). false imprisonment  Without lawful authority, keeping someone locked up or confined, preventing them leaving against their will. A common law action challenging the legality of someone’s imprisonment seeks a writ of habeas corpus (Latin for ‘have the body’, meaning ‘bring the person before the court’). family violence intervention order  A court order made to protect a family member from violence, intimidation or harassment by restraining a person from harmful or annoying conduct towards that family member. See also intervention order . fiat  An official authorisation to do something, issued in the name of a government official. An example is an Attorney- General’s fiat to allow a person to bring proceedings in a court when they would not normally have the right to do so.