The Working Library

Glossary of Pakistani legal terms.

The working vocabulary of the courts and registries — each term in one plain-English sentence, with an Urdu-transliterated gloss.

A

Accountability court: A special court established under the National Accountability Ordinance, 1999 to try corruption references filed by the National Accountability Bureau.; ehtesab adalat — NAB ke muqadmaat sunne wali khusoosi adalat
Acquittal: A court's finding that the prosecution has not proved its case, releasing the accused from the charge.; bari — ilzaam se rihai ka adalati faisla
Ad-interim: An order granted immediately and provisionally, before the other side is heard, to hold matters until the application is decided.; aarzi hukm — doosre fareeq ki sunwai se pehle ka foree hukm
Adjournment: The postponement of a hearing to a later date.; iltiwa — sunwai agli tareekh tak multavi karna
Advocate-on-Record: An advocate authorised under the Supreme Court Rules to file and act in cases before the Supreme Court of Pakistan, through whom other counsel appear.; advocate-on-record — Supreme Court mein muqadma dair karne ka mujaz wakeel
Affidavit: A written statement sworn on oath before an authorised officer and used as evidence in court.; halaf-nama — halaf par diya gaya tehreeri bayan
Appeal: A request to a higher court to set aside or vary the decision of a lower court.; appeal — nichli adalat ke faisle ke khilaf bala adalat se darkhwast
Arbitration: The resolution of a dispute by a private tribunal the parties choose instead of a court.; salisi — fareeqain ke muqarrar kardah salis ke zariye faisla
Attachment: A court order seizing or freezing property so that it remains available to satisfy a decree or claim.; qurki — adalat ke hukm par jaidad ki zabti

B

Bail: The release of an accused from custody on a bond, with or without sureties, pending trial.; zamanat — muqadme ke doran hirasat se rihai
Bail before arrest: Pre-arrest bail granted by a court to protect a person from arrest in a case registered against them, confirmed or recalled after hearing.; qabl-az-girftari zamanat — girftari rokne ka aarzi adalati hukm
Bailable offence: An offence for which bail is a matter of right rather than the court's discretion.; qabil-e-zamanat jurm — jis mein zamanat haq ke tor par milti hai
Benami: Property held in one person's name while another person paid for it and actually owns it.; benami — doosre ke naam par rakhi gayi jaidad

C

Call-up notice: A notice from the National Accountability Bureau or another agency requiring a person to appear and answer questions during an inquiry or investigation.; talbi ka notice — tehqiqat mein paish hone ka hukm-nama
Cause list: The court's daily list of cases fixed for hearing before each bench.; cause list — rozana sunwai ke muqadmaat ki fehrist
Cause of action: The set of facts that gives a person the right to sue.; bunyad-e-dawa — dawa dair karne ka haq dene wale haqaiq
Caveat: A notice filed with a court asking to be heard before any order is passed in a case expected to be filed.; caveat — hukm se pehle sunwai ki darkhwast ka notice
Certified copy: An official copy of a court record or order, issued and attested by the copying branch.; musaddiqa naqal — adalati record ki tasdeeq-shuda naqal
Challan: The final police report submitted to the court under section 173 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898, on which the trial proceeds.; challan — police ki hatmi tafteeshi report
Charge: The formal statement of the offence framed by the trial court, to which the accused pleads guilty or not guilty.; fard-e-jurm — adalat ka tehreeri ilzaam jis par mulzim jawab deta hai
Cognizable offence: An offence for which the police may register an FIR and arrest without a warrant.; qabil-e-dast-andazi jurm — jis mein police warrant ke baghair girftar kar sakti hai
Commission: A person the court appoints to record evidence, inspect a site, or perform another task and report back.; commission — adalat ka muqarrar kardah shakhs jo mauqa dekh kar report deta hai
Compoundable offence: An offence the parties may lawfully settle between themselves, with the court's permission where the law requires it.; qabil-e-razinama jurm — jo fareeqain sulah se khatam kar sakte hain
Compromise: A settlement between the parties that ends the dispute and is recorded by the court.; razinama — fareeqain ke darmiyan sulah
Confession: An admission of guilt by an accused, recorded before a magistrate under section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 if it is to be used at trial.; iqbal-e-jurm — mulzim ka magistrate ke samne jurm tasleem karna
Contempt of court: Conduct that disobeys a court order or scandalises the court, punishable by the court itself.; tauheen-e-adalat — adalati hukm ki khilaf-warzi ya be-hurmati
Court fee: The fee paid on a plaint or application through court-fee stamps, without which the filing is incomplete.; court fee — dawa ya darkhwast par wajib sarkari fees
Cross-examination: The questioning of a witness by the opposing side to test the truth of their evidence.; jirah — mukhalif fareeq ke wakeel ke gawah se sawalat

D

Dasti: Service of summons or notices delivered by hand through the party itself rather than through ordinary court process.; dasti — apne haath se notice ki taameel
Decree: The formal expression of a civil court's judgment that conclusively determines the rights of the parties.; digri — deewani faisle ka rasmi hukm-nama
Decree-holder: The party in whose favour a decree has been passed and who may execute it.; digri-daar — jiske haq mein digri hui ho
Defendant: The party against whom a civil suit is filed.; mudda-alaih — jis par dawa kiya gaya ho
Diary number: The number the court office assigns to a filing when it is first received, before a case number is allotted.; diary number — dair hone par daftar ka diya gaya ibtidayi number
Discharge: The release of an accused before or at trial because the record discloses no sufficient ground to proceed against them.; rihai — nakafi shahadat par mulzim ki khalasi

E

Ejectment: A landlord's proceeding to recover possession of premises from a tenant.; bedakhli — kirayedar se qabza wapas lene ki karwai
Ex-parte: Proceedings heard or decided in the absence of one party after that party fails to appear.; yak-tarfa — aik fareeq ki ghair-hazri mein karwai
Execution: The court process by which a decree-holder enforces the decree against the judgment debtor.; ijra — digri par amal-daramad ki adalati karwai
Exemption application: An application asking the court to excuse a party's personal appearance on a hearing date.; hazri se isteesna ki darkhwast — zaati paishi se muaafi ki darkhwast
Exhibit: A document or object formally produced and marked as evidence at trial.; exhibit — shahadat mein lagayi gayi dastawez ya shai

F

Farad: A single-page extract from the revenue record, commonly called a fard, showing the ownership entries for a piece of land.; fard — record-e-mal se milkiyat ki naqal
FIR: The first information report recorded by the police under section 154 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898, which sets the criminal process in motion.; FIR — police ko jurm ki pehli ittila ka indraaj

G

Girdawari: The periodic inspection of crops and possession recorded by the patwari in the revenue record.; girdawari — patwari ka fasl aur qabze ka indraaj

H

Habeas corpus: A petition asking the court to order that a detained person be produced and released if the detention is unlawful.; habeas corpus — ghair-qanooni hirasat se rihai ki adalati darkhwast
Hiba: A gift of property under Muslim law, completed by offer, acceptance, and delivery of possession.; hiba — qabze ki muntaqali ke sath diya gaya tohfa

I

Identification parade: A supervised lineup, ordinarily held before a magistrate, at which a witness is asked to pick out the accused.; shanakht parade — gawah se mulzim ki shanakht ki karwai
Injunction: A court order requiring a party to do, or to refrain from doing, a particular act.; hukm-e-imtinah — kisi kaam se rokne ya karne ka adalati hukm
Intra-court appeal: An appeal from a single judge of a High Court to a larger bench of the same court.; intra-court appeal — usi adalat ke bade bench ke samne appeal
Investigation officer: The police officer assigned to investigate an FIR, collect the evidence, and submit the challan.; tafteeshi afsar — muqadme ki tehqiqat ka zimmedar afsar
Issues: The disputed questions of fact and law framed by a civil court, on which the parties lead their evidence.; tanqeehat — mutanaza sawalat jin par shahadat hoti hai

J

Jail petition: An appeal or petition a convicted prisoner sends directly from jail, without engaging counsel.; jail petition — qaidi ki jail se bheji gayi appeal
Jamabandi: The periodically revised register of rights recording the ownership and cultivation of land in a revenue estate.; jamabandi — zameen ke huqooq ka mal register
Judgment debtor: The party against whom a decree has been passed and against whom it is executed.; madyoon — jiske khilaf digri ka ijra ho raha ho
Jurisdiction: The authority of a court to hear and decide a particular case.; ikhtiyar-e-samaat — adalat ka muqadma sunne ka ikhtiyar
Justice of the peace: An ex-officio judicial officer, ordinarily a Sessions Judge, empowered under section 22-A of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 to direct the police to register an FIR.; justice of the peace — FIR ke indraaj ka hukm dene ka mujaz afsar

K

Khasra: The survey number identifying a specific plot of land in the village revenue record.; khasra — zameen ke tukde ka survey number
Khata: An account or holding number in the revenue record grouping the land of one owner or set of owners.; khata — record-e-mal mein malik ki zameen ka khaata
Khatooni: The subdivision of a khata showing the holdings of individual cultivators or co-sharers.; khatooni — khate ke andar kaashtkaron ke hisse ka indraaj

L

Leave to appeal: The Supreme Court's permission to appeal, sought by a petition commonly called a CPLA.; ijazat-e-appeal — Supreme Court se appeal karne ki ijazat
Limitation: The statutory time limit within which a suit, appeal, or application must be filed.; miyaad — dawa ya appeal dair karne ki qanooni muddat
Lis pendens: The rule that property transferred while litigation over it is pending remains bound by the outcome of that litigation.; lis pendens — zair-e-samaat jaidad ki muntaqali faisle ke tabe rehti hai

M

Malkhana: The police storeroom where case property and recovered articles are kept pending trial.; maal-khana — muqadmati maal rakhne ka police store
Mashirnama: A memo recording a recovery, arrest, or site inspection in the presence of witnesses called mashirs, used mainly in Sindh.; mashirnama — gawahon ki maujoodgi mein karwai ka tehreeri memo
Mesne profits: The profits that a person in wrongful possession of property earned, or ought to have earned, and which the owner may recover.; mesne profits — najaiz qabze ke doran ka munafa
Misc application: An interim application, often styled a CMA, filed within a pending case to seek an incidental order.; mutafarriq darkhwast — zair-e-samaat muqadme mein zimni darkhwast
Muchalka: A personal bond, with or without sureties, undertaking to appear before the authorities or to keep the peace.; muchalka — hazri ya aman qaim rakhne ka zaati bond
Mukhtar-nama: A power of attorney authorising one person to act for another, either general or special.; mukhtar-nama — kisi ko apni jagah kaam karne ka ikhtiyar dene ki dastawez
Mutation: The entry in the revenue record, called an intiqal, that records the transfer of land after a sale, gift, or inheritance.; intiqal — record-e-mal mein milkiyat ki tabdeeli ka indraaj

N

Naib qasid: The court or office messenger who moves files, delivers papers within the building, and calls cases.; naib qasid — adalati daftar ka harkara
Nazir: The court official who holds deposits, executes commissions, conducts auctions, and manages property in the court's charge.; nazir — adalat ka maali aur intizami afsar
Non-bailable offence: An offence for which bail is not a matter of right and is granted at the court's discretion.; naqabil-e-zamanat jurm — jis mein zamanat adalat ki sawabdeed par hai
Notification: A government order or delegated instrument published in the official Gazette to take legal effect.; notification — sarkari gazette mein shaya hukm

O

Oath commissioner: An advocate appointed to administer oaths and attest affidavits.; oath commissioner — halaf-nama ki tasdeeq ka mujaz wakeel
Obiter: A remark in a judgment that is not necessary to the decision and does not bind later courts.; obiter — faisle ki zimni raye jo nazir nahi banti
Office objection: A defect in a filing noted by the court office, which must be removed before the case is numbered and fixed for hearing.; daftari aetraz — misl par daftar ka aetraz jo door karna zaroori hai
Ordinance: A temporary law promulgated by the President or a Governor when the legislature is not in session, which lapses unless enacted.; ordinance — sadr ya governor ka jari kardah aarzi qanoon

P

Pairvi: The day-to-day pursuit of a case, including attending dates, instructing counsel, and keeping the matter moving.; pairvi — muqadme ki musalsal nigrani aur taaqub
Partition: The division of jointly owned property among co-owners, by suit or by revenue proceedings.; taqseem — mushtarka jaidad ki hissedaron mein taqseem
Patwari: The village-level revenue official who maintains the land record and reports on possession and crops.; patwari — mauze ka record rakhne wala mal ahalkar
Plaint: The written statement of claim that begins a civil suit.; arzi-e-dawa — deewani muqadma shuru karne ki tehreer
Plaintiff: The party who files a civil suit.; muddai — dawa dair karne wala fareeq
Plea bargain: An arrangement under the National Accountability Ordinance, 1999 by which an accused returns the assessed proceeds and is discharged from the reference, subject to the accountability court's approval.; plea bargain — raqam ki wapsi ke iwaz NAB muqadme se khalasi
Pre-emption: The right, called shufa, of certain persons to buy neighbouring or co-owned land in preference to a stranger when it is sold.; shufa — farokht par pehle khareedne ka haq
Proclaimed offender: An accused declared an absconder by the court after failing to appear despite public proclamation.; ishtihari mulzim — elaan ke bawajood mafroor shakhs

Q

Qanun-e-Shahadat: The Qanun-e-Shahadat Order, 1984, which governs what evidence courts in Pakistan may receive and how it is proved.; qanun-e-shahadat — Pakistan ka qanoon-e-shahadat, 1984
Quashment: A High Court order quashing an FIR or criminal proceedings that amount to an abuse of the process of law.; mansookhi — FIR ya karwai ka adalati khatma

R

Ratio decidendi: The legal principle on which a decision actually rests, which binds later courts.; ratio — faisle ka bunyadi qanooni usool jo nazir banta hai
Reference: The prosecution filed by the National Accountability Bureau before an accountability court, the counterpart of a charge sheet in corruption cases.; reference — NAB ka ehtesab adalat mein dair kardah istighasa
Rejoinder: The claimant's written reply to the defence's written statement or counter-affidavit.; jawab-ul-jawab — mudda-alaih ke jawab par muddai ka jawab
Remand: The order sending an accused into police custody, called physical remand, or to jail, called judicial remand, during the investigation.; remand — tafteesh ke doran hirasat ki adalati muhlat
Restoration: An application to revive a suit, appeal, or petition dismissed for non-prosecution or decided ex-parte.; bahali ki darkhwast — kharij shuda muqadma dobara chalane ki darkhwast
Review: A request that the same court reconsider its own judgment on narrow grounds, such as an error apparent on the face of the record.; nazar-e-sani — usi adalat se faisle par dobara ghor ki darkhwast
Revision: A higher court's re-examination of a lower court's order for jurisdictional error or material irregularity.; nigrani — bala adalat ki taraf se nichle hukm ka jaiza
Robkar: The court's order sheet or a formal written order sent out for compliance.; robkar — adalati hukm ki tehreer jo taameel ke liye bheji jati hai
Roznamcha: The daily register kept at a police station or by a patwari, recording events and entries in sequence.; roznamcha — rozana ke indraajat ka register

S

Sale deed: The registered instrument, called a bay-nama, by which title to immovable property is conveyed to a buyer.; bay-nama — jaidad ki farokht ki registry-shuda dastawez
Sanad: A certificate or formal grant, such as an advocate's licence to practise or a document of title.; sanad — licence ya haq ki rasmi dastawez
Short order: The operative order a court announces immediately, with detailed reasons to follow later.; mukhtasar hukm — tafseeli wajoohat baad mein jari hone wala hukm
Specific performance: A decree compelling a party to perform a contract, typically for the sale of land, instead of paying damages.; specific performance — muahide par amal-daramad ka adalati hukm
SRO: A statutory regulatory order, the numbered and gazetted delegated legislation issued by the government, most often in tax and customs matters.; SRO — hukoomat ka gazette-shuda zeli qanoon
Stamp duty: The tax payable on instruments such as sale deeds and agreements, paid through stamp paper or e-stamping.; stamp duty — dastawezaat par wajib sarkari mehsool
Status quo: An order directing that the existing position of the parties or the property be maintained until further orders.; status quo — maujooda soorat-e-haal barqarar rakhne ka hukm
Stay order: An interim order suspending proceedings or restraining action until the case is decided.; stay order — muqadme ya karwai ko rokne ka aarzi hukm
Stay vacation: The setting aside of a stay order, on the other side's application or by lapse of time where the law so provides.; stay ki mansookhi — hukm-e-imtinai ka khatma
Sub-registrar: The registration officer before whom deeds are presented, admitted, and registered under the Registration Act, 1908.; sub-registrar — dastawezaat ki registry karne wala afsar
Succession certificate: A certificate entitling the legal heirs of a deceased person to collect the deceased's debts and securities, issued by the court or, in uncontested cases, by NADRA.; wirasat ka certificate — marhoom ke asasa jaat lene ki sanad
Suit: A civil claim instituted by presenting a plaint in a court of competent jurisdiction.; dawa — deewani muqadma
Summons: The court's formal notice requiring a defendant or a witness to appear.; samman — adalat mein hazri ka hukm-nama
Suo motu: Action a court takes on its own motion, without any party's application.; az-khud notice — adalat ki apni tehreek par karwai
Superdari: The interim release of seized property, such as a vehicle, into a claimant's custody on bond while the case continues.; supurdari — zabt shuda cheez ki aarzi hawalgi
Surety: A person who binds themselves by bond to ensure the accused's appearance in court.; zamin — mulzim ki hazri ka zimmedar shakhs

T

Talb-i-muwathibat: The immediate demand of pre-emption that a pre-emptor must make on learning of the sale, without which the right is lost.; talb-e-muwathibat — bay ki khabar par foran shufa ka mutalba
Talbana: The process fee deposited for the service of summons or notices on the other side.; talbana — samman ki taameel ke liye jama karayi jane wali fees
Tehsildar: The revenue officer in charge of a tehsil, who attests mutations and hears first-instance revenue matters.; tehsildar — tehsil ka mal afsar

U

Undertaking: A formal promise given to the court, the breach of which is punishable as contempt.; undertaking — adalat ko diya gaya pukhta wada

V

Vakalatnama: The written authority a client signs appointing an advocate to act in a case.; wakalat-nama — wakeel ki taqarruri ki tehreeri ijazat

W

Warrant: A written order of a court authorising an arrest or a search, and issued as bailable or non-bailable.; warrant — girftari ya talashi ka adalati hukm-nama
Winding up: The process of dissolving a company and distributing its assets under the Companies Act, 2017.; tasfiya — company ke asasa jaat ka tasfiya aur khatma
Writ: A petition to a High Court under Article 199 of the Constitution seeking relief against unlawful action of public authorities.; writ — Article 199 ke tehat High Court se dad-rasi ki darkhwast
Written statement: The defendant's written reply to the plaint, setting out the defence.; jawab-e-dawa — mudda-alaih ka tehreeri jawab

Z

Zimni: The case-diary entries recorded by the investigation officer describing each step of the investigation.; zimni — tafteesh ki rozana karwai ka indraaj

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