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Paedophile 

A person afflicted with "paedophilia", a sexual perversion in which children are preferred as sexual partners.

Palm tree justice

A term, often used pejoratively, for compromise justice, as distinct from real justice.  At best, a common sense approach, or pragmatic justice.

Perhaps derived from the image of a colonial magistrate sitting under his judicial palm tree, meting out decisions that seemed right to him in the particular cases at hand, or from the concept of people sitting under a tree and agreeing a solution. 

BUCKNILL LJ, in the unreported case of Newgrosh v Newgrosh (1950) appears to be the first judge to have use the expression judicially, when he said,

"...the principle which has been described here as 'Palm Tree Justice.' I understand that to be justice which makes orders which appear to be fair and just in the special circumstances of the case."

Paralegal 

A person who is not a lawyer or is not acting in that capacity but who provides a limited number of legal services.

Pardon 

A pardon is a crown decision to allow a person who has been convicted of a crime, to be free and absolved of that conviction, as if never convicted.

Parens patriae 

[Latin:  a common law creation whereby the courts have the right to make unfettered decisions concerning people who are not able to take care of themselves].

For example, court can make custody decisions regarding a child or an insane person, even without statute law to allow them to do so, based on their residual, common law based parens patriae jurisdiction.

Pari delicto 

Latin for "of equal fault." For example, if two parties complain to a judge of the non performance of a contract by the other, the judge could refuse to provide a remedy to either of them because of "pari delicto": a finding that they were equally at fault in causing the contract's breach. Pari passu 

[Latin: Equitably and without preference]. This term is often used in bankruptcy proceedings where creditors are said to be "pari passu" which means that they are all equal and that distribution of the assets will occur without preference between them

Parole 

An early release from prison in which the prisoner promises to heed certain conditions (usually set by a parole board) and under the supervision of a probation officer. Any violation of those conditions could result in the return of the person to prison.

Parricide 

Killing one's parent or another a family member or close relative.

Partnership 

A business organisation in which two or more persons carry on a business together for profit. Partners are each fully liable for all the debts of the enterprise but they also share the profits exclusively. 

One of the basic advantages of partnerships is that they tend to allow business losses to be deducted from personal income for tax purposes (see also limited partner).

Parliament Acts (1911 and 1949)

The Parliament Act of 1911 was introduced to reform Parliament, and the House of Lords in particular. It deprived the House of Lords of any power over Money Bills and gave the Speaker the power to decide what was a Money Bill. It allowed Bills that had been passed by the Commons in three successive sessions, but rejected by the Lords in all three, to become Law. It reduced the maximum life of a Parliament from seven to five years.

The Parliament Act 1949 reduced the powers that the House of Lords had to delay a Bill from becoming law if the House of Commons approved it. Since the Parliament Act 1911 the House of Lords had been able to delay legislation for two years. The 1949 Act reduced this to one year.

Paternity 

Being a father. "Paternity suits" are launched when a man denies paternity of a child born out of wedlock. New technology of DNA testing can establish paternity thus obliging the father to provide child support.

Patricide 

The killing of one's father.

Payee 

The person to whom payment is addressed or given.  In commercial law, the term refers to the person to whom a bill of exchange is made payable. On a regular cheque, the space preceded with the words "pay to the order of" identifies the payee.

Payor 

The person who is making the payment(s).   In commercial law, the word refers to the person who makes the payment on a cheque or bill of exchange.

Peer 

A member of the House of Lords.
A Peer is someone who is a Baron, Duke, Earl or Marquis.

Some titles are Hereditary but most Barons are Life Peers. Life Peers and some Hereditary Peers are entitled to sit in the House of Lords.

The Members of the House of Lords consist of around 700 Hereditary Peers, Life Peers and Bishops. The public does not elect Members of the Lords.

Hereditary Peers inherit their titles and Life Peers are appointed by the Queen on the advice of the Prime Minister to serve for their life; the title is not transferable. Since 2000 most hereditary peers have lost the right to sit in the House of Lords.

Pendente lite 

[Latin: during litigation]. For example, if the validity of a will is challenged, a court might appoint an administrator pendente lite with limited powers to do such things as may be necessary to preserve the assets of the deceased until a hearing can be convened on the validity of the will.

Another example is an injunction pendente lite, to last only during the litigation and, again, designed simply to preserve something until the decisive court order is issued.

Per curiam 

[Latin: by the court - literally "through the senate"] Statement made by the court to clarify a point of law, correctly made and can be used as precedent. 

Statements per curiam are sometimes found near the end of case report, or they may be in the headnote usually High Court, Court of Appeal or House of Lords cases.

They are explicit statements of the law.  Normally, there is one judgment given by one judge on behalf of the whole court (hence "through the senate").  The other judges may or may not make comments.  However, in the House of Lords there are separate speeches, one of which might contain the per curiam statement.

The per curiam statement will probably not be part of the ratio decidendi of the case, but is nevertheless intended to be an authoritative statement of the law.

So, in Halsey v Milton Keynes General NHS Trust [2004] CA the Court of Appeal was asked to decide "when should the court impose a costs sanction against a successful litigant on the grounds that he has refused to take part in an alternative dispute resolution (ADR)?"; the court issued a statement per curiam:

"All members of the legal profession who conduct litigation should now routinely consider with their clients whether their disputes are suitable for ADR" (at paragraph 11).

In Halsey Lord Justice Dyson gave the judgment for the whole court.

Contrast per incuriam

The curia (from where we derive per curiam) was the senate house where Roman senators met during the Republic of ancient Rome.  Although the Senate could not make laws, it was the dominant force in Roman politics; its decrees virtually had the force of law and strongly influenced legislation.  Like modern courts, the senate was not an elected body and like early English courts its original purpose was to advise the King.

Per incuriam (the "per incuriam rule")

[Latin: through the want of care] A decision which a subsequent court finds to be a mistake, and therefore not binding precedent. 

It may have occurred through ignorance of a relevant authority e.g. a case on the point of law or legislation.

Firstly, in the Court of Appeal a decision is given per incuriam it acted in ignorance of a previous decision of its own or of a court of co-ordinate jurisdiction which covered the case before it.

If this happens it must decide which case to follow.

Second, when it has acted in ignorance of a House of Lords decision.

If this happens it must follow that decision.

Third, when the decision is given in ignorance of the terms of a statute or rule having statutory force.

Forth, when, in rare and exceptional cases, when it is satisfied that the earlier decision involved a manifest slip or error and there is no real prospect of a further appeal to the House of Lords.

General rule:

A decision is not per incuriam, for example because the court had not the benefit of the best argument. 

Generally, the only cases in which decisions should be held to be given per incuriam are those given in ignorance of some inconsistent statute or binding authority.

Even if a decision of the Court of Appeal has misinterpreted a previous decision of the House of Lords, the Court of Appeal must follow its previous decision and leave the House of Lords to rectify the mistake.

Sir Raymond Evershed MR, in Williams v Fawcett (1985) CA:

"As a general rule the only cases in which decisions should be held to have been given per incuriam are those of decisions given in ignorance or forgetfulness of some inconsistent statutory provision or of some authority binding on the court concerned: so that in such cases some part of the decision or some step in the reasoning on which it is based is found, on that account, to be demonstrably wrong.

 

"This definition is not necessarily exhaustive, but cases not strictly within it which can properly be held to have been decided per incuriam must, in our judgment, consistently with the stare decisis rule which is an essential feature of our law, be, in the language of Lord Greene MR, of the rarest occurrence. In the present case it is not shown that any statutory provision or binding authority was overlooked... As we have already said, it is, in our judgment, impossible to fasten upon any part of the decision under consideration or upon any step in the reasoning upon which the judgments were based and to say of it: 'Here was a manifest slip or error.'"

Lord Denning, citing the per incuriam rule, in Broome v Cassell [1971] famously persuaded the other members of the Court of Appeal to reach a decision that was contrary to a House of Lords decision in Rookes v Barnard [1964].  This was part of a concerted campaign by Denning to give more flexibility to the Court of Appeal.  Denning's decision was reversed when Broome reached the House of Lords.

In Young v Bristol Aeroplane co. Ltd [1944] the Court of Appeal found three reasons for not being bound by its previous decisions, the third is " ... the court is not bound to follow a decision of its own if it is satisfied that the decision was given per incuriam, e.g., where a statute or a rule having statutory effect which would have affected the decision was not brought to the attention of the earlier court". 

It is now found that there are more than three reasons, for example conflict with the Human Rights Act.

Percolating water 

Water which seeps or filters through the ground without any definite channel and not part of the flow of any waterway. The best example is rain water.

Perjury 

An intentional lie given while under oath or in a sworn affidavit.

Permanent Vegetative State 

Permanent Vegetative State See PVS below.

Perpetuity 

Forever; of unlimited duration. There is a strong bias in the law against things that are to last in perpetuity. Rights that are to last forever are said to hinder commerce as an impediment to the circulation of property. That is why there is a rule against perpetuities

Person 

An entity with legal rights and existence including the ability to sue and be sued, to sign contracts, to receive gifts, to appear in court either by themselves or by lawyer and, generally, other powers incidental to the full expression of the entity in law. Individuals are "persons" in law unless they are minors or under some kind of other disability, such as a court finding of mental incapacity.

Many laws give certain powers to "persons" which, in almost all instances, includes business organisations that have been formally registered such as partnerships, corporations or associations.

Personal property

This is all property except land.

Personal representative 

In the law of wills, this is the general name given to the person who administers the estate of a deceased person. There are two kinds of personal representatives. Where a person dies without a will, the court must appoint an administrator. Where a personal representative is named in a will, the personal representative is known as an executor or if female an executrix.

Pettifogger 

A petty or underhanded lawyer who sustains a professional livelihood on disreputable or dishonourable business. The word has also taken on an common usage definition referring to anyone prone to quibbling over details

Petty offence 

A minor crime and for which the punishment is usually just a small fine or short term of imprisonment.

Physical custody or actual custody 

A child custody decision which used to grant the right to organise and administer the day to day residential care of a child. Now the orders are for parental responsibility and residence (or contact, prohibited steps or specific issues).

Picket 

To object publicly, on or adjacent to the employer's premises, to an employer's labour practices, goods or services. The most common form of picketing is patrolling with signs

Pillory 

A medieval punishment and restraining device made of moveable and adjustable boards through which a prisoner's head or limbs were pinned. Pillories were often fixed to the ground in a city's main square and on market days, local criminals were exhibited.

Citizens were given license to throw things at the prisoners. As such, this method of punishment was not just humiliating but often led to serious injury or death. For the government, this was a public statement serving to warn others of the consequences of crime. England abolished the pillory as a form of punishment in 1837.

Plaintiff 

Formerly the person who brings an case to court; who sues.

Now called "claimant", "petitioner" or "applicant". The person being sued is generally called the "defendant" or the "respondent".

Plea and directions 

A procedure in the Crown Court at which a defendant is required to enter his or her plea and the judge may makes directions as to the progress of the case.

Plea bargaining 

Negotiations during a criminal trial, between an accused person and a prosecutor in which the accused agrees to admit to a crime (sometimes a lesser crime than the one set out in the original charge), avoiding the expense of a trial. 

Judges seldom give an indication of sentence in the event of a plea of guilty, but counsel can ask to see the judge for such purpose, but the judge will usually refuse.

Plea before venue 

A procedure in the magistrates’ court where, in an either-way case, a defendant is given the opportunity to indicate his or her likely plea

Pleadings 

That part of a party's case in which he or she formally sets out the facts and legal arguments which support that party's position. Pleadings can be in writing or they can be made verbally to a court, during the trial.