Some Legal Maxims

[lexlingua]

L

Labera lege - Read my lips
Labor omnia vincit - Work conquers all things. (Virgil)
Labra lege - Read my lips
Lachryma Christi - Christ's tears
Lapsus alumni - Error made
Lapsus calami - A slip of the pen
Lapsus linguae - A slip of the tongue
Lapsus memoriae - A slip of the memory
Lapsus nivium! - Avalanche!!
Lares et penates - Household gods
Latet anguis in herba - A snake lies in the grass. (Vergil)
Latine dictum - Spoken in Latin
Latine loqui coactus sum - I have this compulsion to speak Latin
Latro! fremo! - Woof woof! Grrrr!
Laudant illa, sed ista legunt - Some (writing) is praised, but other is read. (Martialis)
Laudatores temporis acti - Praisers of time past
Laus Deo - Praise be to God
Lavdem virtvtis necessitati damvs - We give to necessity the praise of virtue finding the benefit in what's needful
Lectori Salutem (L.S.) - Greetings to the reader
Lectio brevior lectio potior - The shortest reading is the more probable reading
Lector benevole - Kind reader
Legatus a latere - Advisor from the side
Lege atque lacrima - Read 'em and weep
Lege et lacrima - Read it and weep
Legum servi sumus ut liberi esse possimus - We are slaves of the law so that we may be able to be free. (Cicero)
Leve fit, quod bene fertur, onus - The burden is made light which is borne well. (Ovid)
Lex clavatoris designati rescindenda est - The designated hitter rule has got to go
Lex domicilii - The law of a person's home country
Lex fori - The law of the forum (country)
Lex loci - The law of the place
Lex malla, lex nulla - A bad law is no law. (St. Thomas Aquinas)
Lex non scripta - The unwritten (common) law
Lex scripta - The written law
Lex talionis - The law of revenge
Libenter homines id quod volunt credunt - Men gladly believe that which they wish for. (Caesar)
Liberae sunt nostrae cogitationes - Our thoughts are free. (Cicero)
Liberate te ex inferis - Save yourself from hell
Libertas inaestimabilis res est - Liberty is a thing beyond all price. (Corpus Iuris Civilis)
Liberum arbitrium - Free will
Libra solidus denarius (L.S.D.) - Pounds, shillings, pence
Licentia liquendi - Liberty of speaking
Licentia poetica - Poetic licence. (Seneca)
Licet - It is allowed
Lingua franca - French tongue - the common or universal language
Literati - Men of letters
Litoralis - Beach bum
Litterae humaniores - The humanities
Loco citato (lc) - In the passage just quoted
Locum tenens - One occupying the place (used as an English noun meaning 'deputy')
Locus classicus - The most authoritative source, Classical passage
Locus delicti - The scene of the crime
Locus desperatus - A hopeless passage
Locus enim est principum generationis rerum - For place is the origin of things. (Roger Bacon)
Locus in quo - The place in which something happens
Locus poenitentiae - A place for repentance
Locus sigilli (l.s.) - The place of the seal
Locus standi - Place of standing
Longo intervallo - After a long gap
Loquitur (loq.) - He/she speaks
Luctor et emergo - I struggle but I'll survive
Luke sum ipse patrem te - Luke, I am your father. (Star Wars)
Lumen naturale - Natural light
Lupus est homo homini - Man is wolf to man
Lupus in fabula - The wolf in the tale (i.e. Speak of the wolf, and he will come) (Terence)
Lusus naturae - A freak of nature
Lux et veritas - Light and Truth
Lux mundi - The light of the world