Latin Forensic Terms

The word forensic comes from the Latin word ‘forensis‘, which means meaning ‘forum’.

Many Latin terms are used in the field of forensic science. Some commonly used Latin terms within the field of forensic science are listed below:

👉 Aberemurder: meaning ‘Obsolete’ (willful murder)

👉 Abet: meaning ‘To bait’, (to encourage another to commit a crime)

👉 Ab extra: meaning ‘rom outside’, (without)

👉 Actus reus: meaning ‘Guilty by act’, (wrongful deed performed with criminal intent)

👉 Ad hominem: meaning ‘To the individual’, (relating to the preferences of a particular person)

👉 Amicus curiae: meaning ‘Friend of the court’, (person who is allowed to submit a point of view or intervene in a court case)

👉 Compos mentis: meaning ‘Of sound mind’, (legally responsible)

👉 Corpus delicti: meaning ‘The body of the crime’, (fundamental facts that prove a crime)

👉 De novo: meaning ‘New’, (trial that begins again without reference to previous trials)

👉Fidei defensor: meaning ‘Defender of the faith’, (description of leaders especially with regards to British royalty)

👉 Flagrante delicto: meaning ‘While the crime is blazing’, (caught in the act of a crime)

👉 Functus officio: meaning ‘Having served its purpose’, (expiration of someone’s authority due to completion of duty or expired date)

👉 Habeas corpus: meaning ‘That you have a body’, (writ issued to bring a party before a court or judge in order to release or continue to detain the party)

👉 In loco parentis: meaning ‘In place of the parent’, (legal responsibility of a party to take on parental responsibilities)

👉 Indicia: meaning ‘To point out’, (identifying marks or signs)

👉 In esse: meaning ‘In existence’, (being)

👉 In extenso: meaning ‘At full length’, (completely)

👉 In situ: meaning ‘In its place’, (in its original position)

👉Medias res: meaning ‘The midst of things’, (middle of a series of events)

👉Mens rea: meaning ‘Guilty in mind’, (intent or knowledge of performing a criminal act)

👉 Modus operandi: meaning ‘Method of operation’, abbreviated M.O., (particular way by which crimes are committed)

👉Obiter dictum: meaning ‘Something said in passing’, (judge’s observation on something not specifically before a court)

👉 Onus: meaning ‘The burden’, (responsibility of governmental body or plaintiff to prove a case beyond reasonable doubt)

👉Postmortem: meaning ‘After death’, (autopsy performed after a person’s death)

👉Prima facie: meaning ‘At first sight’, (evidence that appears to be sufficient to establish proof)

👉Pro se: meaning ‘On one’s own behalf’, (person who presents their own case before a court without the use of lawyers)

👉Res judicata: meaning ‘The thing has been judged’, (case before a court that has already been decided by another court)

👉 Ultra vires: meaning ‘without authority’, (outside the powers of legal authority)

error: Content is protected !!

Discover more from Forensic's blog

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading