Law, Crime & Punishment, HOM-IRA
This general category includes a selection of more specific topics.
Law, Crime & Punishment Encyclopedia Articles By Title
United States Department of Homeland Security, executive division of the U.S. federal government responsible for......
Homestead Act of 1862, in U.S. history, significant legislative action that promoted the settlement and development......
homicide, the killing of one human being by another. Homicide is a general term and may refer to a noncriminal......
Honig v. Doe, case in which the U.S. Supreme Court on January 20, 1988, ruled (6–2) that a California school board......
honor killing, most often, the murder of a woman or girl by male family members. The killers justify their actions......
Hortonville Joint School District No. 1 v. Hortonville Education Association, case in which the U.S. Supreme Court......
hostage, in war, a person handed over by one of two belligerents to the other or seized as security for the carrying......
house arrest, court-ordered confinement in one’s own home. The sentence is viewed as an important alternative to......
housecarl, member of the personal or household troops or bodyguard of Scandinavian kings and chieftains in the......
The short answer is that Pres. James A. Garfield died as the result of an assassin’s bullet. However, the ultimate......
For decades, the question of how Patrice Lumumba, the first prime minister of the newly independent Democratic......
The Magna Carta significantly influenced the American Constitution by laying the groundwork for the concepts of......
Catherine de’ Medici might say that the Massacre of Saint Bartholomew’s Day was never intended to happen. After......
On August 31, 1955, the body of Emmett Till was found at the bottom of the Tallahatchie River in northern Mississippi.......
In the United States a grand jury is a group of 16 to 23 people chosen by a court for the purpose of determining......
A polygraph test works by measuring someone’s physiological responses, which are believed to change when a person......
Generally speaking, a protest in the sense relevant here is “a usually organized public demonstration of disapproval”......
A patent typically lasts 20 years from the filing date of the application. This standard duration is common around......
There does not appear to be a consensus on the number of men who signed the U.S. Constitution—or, more broadly,......
Ed Gein is one of the most notorious criminals in U.S. history. Known as “the Butcher of Plainfield,” he murdered......
John Wayne Gacy killed at least 33 boys and young men. In the late 1970s authorities discovered 29 bodies buried......
It is uncertain how many people Ted Bundy killed. He confessed to 30 murders, though the number is thought to be......
Of the 70 delegates chosen as representatives to the Constitutional Convention of 1787, only 55 actually attended......
The exact number of victims of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, is not definitively known due to uncertainty......
An earlier version of this article was published on the Britannica blog Advocacy for Animals. In December 1997......
The Dred Scott decision of 1857 put a match to the tinderbox of sectional conflict over the future of slavery,......
Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar, leader of the Medellín cartel, surrendered in June 1991 and was subsequently......
The enforcement of the Thirteenth Amendment in the South was a complex and multifaceted process that involved significant......
hue and cry, early English legal practice of pursuing a criminal with cries and sounds of alarm. It was the duty......
Code of Huesca, most important law code of medieval Aragon, written by Bishop Vidal de Canellas under the Aragonese......
Human Rights Act 1998, legislation that defines the fundamental rights and freedoms to which everyone in the United......
human trafficking, form of modern-day slavery involving the illegal transport of individuals by force or deception......
Hunt v. McNair, legal case in which the U.S. Supreme Court ruled (6–3) on June 25, 1973, that a state program under......
Hurley v. Irish-American Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Group of Boston, Inc., legal case in which, on June 19, 1995,......
hypothec, in Roman law, a type of security for a debt in which the creditor had neither ownership nor possession.......
identity theft, use of an individual’s personally identifying information by someone else (often a stranger) without......
ignorance, in English and U.S. law (as in Roman law) falls into two categories: ignorance of law (ignorantia juris)......
Iguala Plan, (Feb. 24, 1821), appeal issued by Agustín de Iturbide, a creole landowner and a former officer in......
Ikhwān, in Arabia, members of a religious and military brotherhood that figured prominently in the unification......
ikki, peasant uprisings in Japan beginning in the Kamakura period (1192–1333) and continuing through the Tokugawa......
Ilbert Bill, in the history of India, a controversial measure proposed in 1883 that sought to allow senior Indian......
illegitimacy, status of children begotten and born outside of wedlock. Many statutes either state, or are interpreted......
illicit antiquities, archaeological objects that have been illegally excavated or exported from their country of......
immunity, in law, exemption or freedom from liability. In England and the United States legislators are immune......
impeachment, in common law, a proceeding instituted by a legislative body to address serious misconduct by a public......
In re Debs, legal case in which the U.S. Supreme Court, on May 27, 1895, unanimously (9–0) upheld the government’s......
In re Territo, legal case in which the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled on June 8, 1946, that......
independent counsel, Official appointed by the court at the request of the U.S. attorney general to investigate......
indeterminate sentence, in law, term of imprisonment with no definite duration within a prescribed maximum. Eligibility......
Index Librorum Prohibitorum, list of books once forbidden by Roman Catholic Church authority as dangerous to the......
Constitution of India, the supreme law that defines the organizing principles of the Republic of India, the structure......
Parliament of India, the supreme legislature of India. The Parliament consists of the president of India and two......
Indian Councils Act of 1909, series of reform measures enacted in 1909 by the British Parliament, the main component......
Indian Evidence Act, act passed by the British Parliament in 1872 that set forth the rules of evidence admissible......
Indian Independence Act, legislation passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom on July 18, 1947, providing......
Indian law, the legal practices and institutions of India. The general history of law in India is a well-documented......
Indian Rebellion of 1857, widespread but unsuccessful rebellion against British rule in India in 1857–59. Begun......
Indian Removal Act, (May 28, 1830), first major legislative departure from the U.S. policy of officially respecting......
Indian Reorganization Act, (June 18, 1934), measure enacted by the U.S. Congress, aimed at decreasing federal control......
indictment, in the United States, a formal written accusation of crime affirmed by a grand jury and presented by......
Laws of the Indies, the entire body of law promulgated by the Spanish crown during the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries......
Indira Gandhi, born on November 19, 1917, in Allahabad, India, was India’s first female prime minister (1966–77......
industrial court, any of a variety of tribunals established to settle disputes between management and labour, most......
infamy, public disgrace or loss of reputation, particularly as a consequence of criminal conviction. In early common......
infanticide, the killing of a newborn child. It has often been interpreted as a primitive method of birth control......
A mass shooting, also called an active shooter incident, is defined by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation......
information-access law, statute or regulation that determines who may or may not see information held by organizations,......
Ingraham v. Wright, legal case in which the U.S. Supreme Court on April 19, 1977, ruled (5–4) that corporal punishment......
inheritance, the devolution of property on an heir or heirs upon the death of the owner. The term inheritance also......
- Introduction
- Critiques, Laws, Equity
- Freedom, Testation, Wills
- Testation, Wills, Estates
- Divided, Undivided, Law
- Intestate Succession, Wills, Estates
- Civil Law, Property, Succession
- Spousal Rights, Wills, Estates
- Probate, Wills, Estates
- Wills, Estates, Probate
- Estate, Wills, Probate
- Estate, Wills, Probate
injunction, in civil proceedings, order of a court requiring a party to do or not to do a specified act or acts.......
inquest, judicial inquiry by a group of persons appointed by a court. The most common type is the inquest set up......
inquisitorial procedure, in law, one of the two methods of exposing evidence in court (the other being the adversary......
insanity, in criminal law, condition of mental disorder or mental defect that relieves persons of criminal responsibility......
insolvency, financial condition in which the total liabilities of an individual or enterprise exceed the total......
The Insurrection Act is a U.S. federal law passed in 1807 that originally authorized the president of the United......
intellectual-property law, the legal regulations governing an individual’s or an organization’s right to control......
Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), international organization of parliaments of sovereign states established in 1889......
interdict, in Roman and civil law, a remedy granted by a magistrate on the sole basis of his authority, against......
interlocutory decree, generally, a judicial decision that is not final or that deals with a point other than the......
Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (IMRO), secret revolutionary society that was active in the late......
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), autonomous intergovernmental organization dedicated to increasing the......
International Boundary Waters Treaty, (1909), treaty between the United States and Great Britain establishing an......
International Bureau of Weights and Measures (BIPM), international organization founded to bring about the unification......
International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), international coalition of organizations that was founded......
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), intergovernmental specialized agency associated with the United......
International Court of Justice (ICJ), the principal judicial organ of the United Nations (UN). The idea for the......
International Criminal Court (ICC), permanent judicial body established by the Rome Statute of the International......
international criminal law, body of laws, norms, and rules governing international crimes and their repression,......
The International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), passed by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by Pres.......
international law, the body of legal rules, norms, and standards that apply between sovereign states and other......
Institute of International Law, international organization founded in Ghent, Belgium, in 1873 to develop and implement......
International Maritime Organization (IMO), United Nations (UN) specialized agency created to develop international......
Interpol, intergovernmental organization that facilitates cooperation between the criminal police forces of more......
interrogation, in criminal law, process of questioning by which police obtain evidence. The process is largely......
interstate commerce, in U.S. constitutional law, any commercial transactions or traffic that cross state boundaries......
Interstate Commerce Commission, (1887–1996), the first regulatory agency established in the United States, and......
intestate succession, in the law of inheritance, succession to property that has not been disposed of by a valid......
Intolerable Acts, (1774), in U.S. colonial history, four punitive measures enacted by the British Parliament in......
iqṭāʿ, in the Islāmic empire of the Caliphate, land granted to army officials for limited periods in lieu of a......
Iran-Contra Affair, 1980s U.S. political scandal in which the National Security Council (NSC) became involved in......