| Central and Eastern Europe | Law and practice in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. |
| |
| Chancery | The Chancery Division of the high court deals with property matters, wills, trusts and companies, and the expression refers to these areas of legal practice. |
| |
| Charities | Trusts for the relief of poverty, the advancement of education or religion or other purposes beneficial to the community. |
| |
| Child Care | The body of law that protects children (under the age of 14). |
| |
| Children Panel | Solicitors who are trained and assessed for suitability to act in proceedings involving children. |
| |
| China | Law and practice in the People's Republic of China. |
| |
| Civil Liberties | The overall term for the fundamental liberties, privileges and immunities of citizens that are protected by law. |
| |
| Civil Litigation | The process of bringing to court a claim against another person, seeking a remedy such as damages; an order to stop them doing something (or more rarely to compel them to do something); or a divorce. |
| |
| Clinical Negligence | Previously known as medical negligence, this relates to breaches of duties of care in the medical and dentistry professions giving rise to civil claims. |
| |
| Commercial | A broad term which covers areas of law which have relevance to the business and commercial worlds. These are drawn primarily from contract and property law. |
| |
| Commercial Interlocutory Work | Proceedings taking place in commercial matters in front of the court but before trial. Commercial Litigation The process of bringing a commercial law suit to court. |
| |
| Commercial Property | The laws relating to property used for commercial purposes, the purpose of transferring ownership of such property, and commercial property development. |
| |
| Commodities | Articles of commerce: the law relating to trade in them. |
| |
| Common Law (General) | Judge-made law and precedent, as opposed to statutory law. Common law systems (as in the UK, Ireland, the United States, and Commonwealth Countries) are distinguished from the civil law systems found in Continental Europe and much of the rest of the world. In terms of legal practice, the expression is used in distinction to equity and refers in particular to contract disputes, personal injury claims and the like. |
| |
| Community Care | The legal framework within which people who require assistance are cared for. |
| |
| Company | Laws which govern the regulation, production and running of companies. |
| |
| Company Formation | The creation of companies is governed by rules, requiring formalities to be observed and documents to be filed with the authorities. |
| |
| Company Searches | An inspection into a company, conducted by a solicitor on behalf of a client, to ensure that the company is bona fide and has no judgments outstanding against any of its directors or to elicit other information kept in public records. |
| |
| Competition Law | Rules to protect fair competition and control monopolies and mergers. |
| |
| Compulsory Purchase | When land is taken without the agreement of the owner. Housing authorities and highway authorities are among the bodies which can use of compulsory purchase powers. |
| |
| Computers and Information Technology | Legal protection of computer software and data, criminal offences involving computer misuse (e.g. hacking), data protection legislation, computer contracts, and electronic commerce. |
| |
| Consumer Credit | The Consumer Credit Act strictly regulates the activities of providers of credit to consumers, including mortgages, unsecured loans and credit cards. Investment activities are regulated by the Financial Services Act. |
| |
| Consumer Law | The law on the sale and supply of goods and services, trade descriptions, misleading advertising and liability for defective products. |
| |
| Content Management | Licensing of programme content to broadcasters, mobile networks, internet service providers and computer software companies. |
| |
| Contracts | Legally binding agreements between two or more parties. |
| |
| Copyright | A collection of rights relating to the reproduction, distribution, performance and so forth of original literary, musical, dramatic or artistic works, films, sound recordings, broadcasts and other matter. The copyright owner has the exclusive right to do, or allow others to do, the acts set out in the legislation. |
| |
| Creditors | Legal advice and assistance for debtors in their dealings with people to whom they owe money. |
| |
| Crime (General) | Activities which are prohibited for the protection of society as a whole, or a section of society. |
| |
| Criminal Defence | The defence of someone accused of a criminal offence, by a legally qualified person (a solicitor or barrister). In the UK, everyone is entitled to legal representation during criminal proceedings. |
| |
| Criminal Injuries | Direct personal injury suffered as a result of a crime or an attempt to prevent a crime. The victim of a criminal act may qualify for compensation, though the criminal injuries compensation system is notoriously ungenerous. |
| |
| Criminal Litigation | The process of bringing a criminal prosecution to court, or defending it. |
| |
| Crofting | A form of subsistence farming in Scotland. Because of its long tradition, there are laws in existence to protect it. |
| |
| Customs and Excise | Customs and Excise collect import duties, excise duties (such as those payable on alcohol, tobacco and petrol) and value added tax. |
| |
