81. American Civil Liberties Union
membership organization founded in 1920 to protect and defend "the rights of man set forth in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution"
82. American Bar Association
The largest organization of American lawyers, which is prestigious for formulating guidelines for the practice of law, giving direction to legislation, lobbying for the law profession, and evaluating federal judges; less then one-third of attorneys belong to the A.B.A
83. Amended Complaint
what results when the party suing changes the complaint they filed; complaints are amended to correct facts, add new causes of action, substitute discovered names for persons sued as "J. Does" or to properly plead a cause of action after the court found the initial complaint inadequate
84. Amend
alter or change by adding, subtracting, or substituting; one can amend a statute, a contract or a written pleading filed in a lawsuit; the change is usually called an amendment.
85. Ambiguity
when language has more than one meaning; if the ambiguity is obvious it is called "patent," and if there is a hidden ambiguity it is called "latent"
86. Alternative Pleading
legal fiction in which a party to a lawsuit or a defendant charged with a crime can plead two ways which are inconsistent with each other; examples: a) someone hurt in an accident can plead that the other party was negligent or ran into him intentionally b) "not guilty" and "not guilty by reason of insanity" (in which there is the implied admission that the defendant committed the act)
87. Alter Ego
corporation, organization or other entity set up to provide a legal shield for the person actually controlling the operation
88. Allege
to claim that a fact is true
89. Allegation
statement of claimed fact contained in a complaint, a criminal charge, or an affirmative defense; until proven each statement is an allegation
90. Aliquot
a definite fractional share, usually applied when dividing and distributing a deceased person's estate or trust assets