11 - 16s glossary

Civil case
A court case that attempts to settle a dispute between people/groups of people/organisations.

Civil offence
Usually a dispute between two people or between a person and an organisation.

Citizens Advice Bureau
A charity which helps people resolve their legal, money and other problems by providing free information and advice. The service is run in local communities by trained volunteers.

Clerk
A person who looks after all the documents during a trial and who makes sure that the jury takes an oath to give a true verdict.

Common law
The body of law that comes from the courts often based on precedent. Judges make decisions based on the decisions made in previous, similar court cases.

Community order
This punishment order requires people aged 18 or over to perform between 40 and 300 hours’ unpaid community work.

Community punishment order
This punishment order is only for young people aged 16–17. It requires them to complete unpaid community work for between 40 and 240 hours.