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NALA Certified Paralegal Exam Terms and
Concepts Exam Questions And Answers
All Verified By An Expert A+ Graded
,Estate administration - ANS The process in which a decedent's personal
representative settles the affairs of the decedent's estate (collects assets, pays debts
and taxes, and distributes the remaining assets to heirs); the process is usually
overseen by a probate court.
inter vivos trust - ANS A trust created by the grantor (settlor) and effective during the
grantor's lifetime—that is, a trust not established by a will.
Assault - ANS Any word or action intended to make another person apprehensive or
fearful of immediate physical harm, a reasonably believable threat.
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Battery - ANS The intentional and offensive touching of another without lawful
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justification.
Contributory Negligence - ANS A theory in tort law under which a complaining party's
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own negligence contributed to his or her injuries. This type of negligence is an absolute
bar to recover in some jurisdictions.
Comparative Negligence - ANS A theory in tort law under which the liability for injuries
resulting from negligent acts is shared by all persons who were guilty of negligence
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(including the injured party) on the basis of each person's proportionate carelessness.
Negligence per se - ANS An action or failure to act in violation of a statutory
requirement.
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Strict Liability - ANS Liability regardless of fault. In tort law, strict liability may be
imposed on a merchant who introduces into commerce a good that is so defective as to
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be unreasonably dangerous.
Contract Validity Requirements - ANS Agreement, Consideration, Contractual
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Capacity, Legality
Agreement - ANS A meeting of the minds, and a requirement for a valid contract. It
involves two distinct events: an offer to form a contract and the acceptance of that offer
by the offeree.
Offer - ANS A promise or commitment to do or refrain from doing some specified thing
in the future.
Offeror - ANS The party making the offer.
,Offeree - ANS The party to whom the offer is made.
Acceptance - ANS In contract law, the offeree's indication to the offeror that the
offeree agrees to be bound by the terms of the offeror's offer, or proposal to form a
contract.
Mirror Image Rule - ANS A common law rule that requires that the terms of the
offeree's acceptance adhere exactly to the terms of the offeror's offer for a valid contract
to be formed.
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Mailbox Rule - ANS A rule providing that an acceptance of an offer takes effect at the
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time it is communicated via the mode expressly or impliedly authorized by the offeror,
rather than at the time it is actually received by the offeror. If acceptance is to be by
mail, for example, it becomes effective the moment it is placed in the mailbox.
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Consideration - ANS Something of value, such as money or the performance of an
action not otherwise required, that motivates the formation of a contract. Each party
must give this for the contract to be binding.
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Promissory Estoppel - ANS A doctrine under which a promise is binding if the promise
is clear and definite, the promisee justifiably relies on the promise, the reliance is
reasonable and substantial, and justice will be better served by enforcement of the
promise.
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Contractual Capacity - ANS The threshold mental capacity required by law for a party
who enters into a contract to be bound by that contract.
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Statute of Frauds - ANS A state statute that requires certain types of contracts to be in
writing to be enforceable.
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Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) - ANS Statutes adopted by all states, in part or in
whole, that contain uniform laws governing business transactions as defined in the
code.
Rescission - ANS An action to undo, or terminate, a contract-to return the contracting
parties to the positions they occupied prior to the transaction.
, Restitution - ANS An equitable remedy under which a person is restored to her or her
original position prior to loss or injury, or placed in the position that he or she would
have been in had the breach not occurred.
Reformation - ANS An equitable remedy granted by a court to correct , or "reform," a
written contract so that it reflects the true intentions of the parties.
Forms of Intellectual Property - ANS Patent, Copyright, Trademark, Trade Secret
Patent - ANS A government grant that gives an inventor the exclusive right or privilege
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to make, use, or sell an invention for a limited time period.
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Copyright - ANS The exclusive right of an author (or other creator) to publish, print, or
sell an intellectual production for a statutory period of time.
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Trademark - ANS A distinctive mark, motto, device, or emblem that a manufacturer
stamps, prints, or otherwise affixes to the goods it produces so that they can be
identified or the market and their origins made known. Once a trademark is established
(under the common l,aw or through registration), the owner is entitled to its exclusive
use.
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Trade Name - ANS A term that is used to indicate part or all of a business's name and
that is directly related to the business's reputation and goodwill. These are protected
under the common law (and under trademark law, if the business's name is the same as
its trademark).
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Trade Secret - ANS Information or processes that give a business an advantage over
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competitors who do not know the information or processes.
Real Property - ANS Immovable property consisting of land and the builds and plant
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life thereon. Also known as real estate.
Personal Property - ANS Any property that is not real property. Generally, any
property that is movable or intangible is classified as this.
Fee Simple Absolute - ANS Ownership rights entitling the holder to use, possess, or
dispose of the property however he or she chooses during his or her lifetime.
Eminent Domain - ANS The power of a government to take land for public use from
private citizens for just compensation.
