Glossary of Legal Terms
The legal aspects of the Amistad case are very technical and complex, and in order to understand the primary documents better it helps to familiarize yourself with the "legal lingo" used in the proceedings. The following is a list of terms found to be used often and at important points within the legal process. Each term is defined in general, and then specifically as it relates to, and is used during, the Amistad case.
–claim: The formal assertion of one's title and ownership of property.
In the Amistad case, claims were filed by everyone involved except Lt. Gedney
and Henry Green, neither of whom had official right to any of the property.
–libel: In admiralty law, a libel is simply the written statement of the plaintiff
explaining and describing his cause of action, and any relief he seeks. [The more
familiar definition is the one in criminal and civil suits where the term denotes
seditious slander of an individual without just cause.]
In the Amistad case, libels were filed by Lt. Gedney and Henry Green (both
asking for salvage of the Amistad and her cargo), Jose Ruiz (asking for the restoration
of his portion of the cargo, including the forty-nine Africans he claimed as slaves
belonging to him), and Pedro Montez (asking for the restoration of his portion of
the cargo, including the four African children he claimed as slaves belonging to
him). A libel was also filed by the United States on behalf of Spain, for the restoration
of the Amistad and her crew to the "Spanish subjects", the rightful owners
of the property.
Libels and claims are two very similar aspects of the legal process. You have probably
already witnessed this if you have taken a look at the various claims and libels
of those involved in the Amistad case. Why do the parties file two documents
saying virtually the same thing, but call one a claim and the other a libel? Despite
the similarities, they are two separate legal forms and it is important to recognize
their disparities. The purpose of a claim is simply to state exactly what is legally
owned by the claimant (the one filing the claim), so obviously claims can only be
filed by those with evidence to their legal ownership of property. This is why Gedney
and Green could not file claims, for example. They were hoping for salvage rewards,
but did not actually own any of the cargo aboard the Amistad. Libels
are the official legal statement and stance of the parties as plaintiffs
(i.e. those bringing the action to the court), and explain the actions of the libellant
(the one who files the libel), what he seeks through the court and why he feels legally
justified to do so. The Africans' might be expected to have filed a libel on their
behalf, but they were unable to do so because they were the defendants in the case,
and could only file a claim.
–habeas corpus: A writ of habeas corpus, in its most general usage, is issued
by a court or filed by attorneys. If it is issued by the court, it is done so usually
by a higher court to gain information regarding a trial from a lower court, or to
force a prisoner to stand trial in that higher court. If it is filed by an attorney,
it is usually done so to gain the release of someone being detained in custody. Similarly
in both instances, however, it is used to procure the release of something, whether
it be testimony, information, or a prisoner.
In the Amistad case, the Africans' defense was using the writ to formally inquire into the lawfulness of the imprisonment of the three little girls and boy. The Africans as a group were being held in prison, initially, because they were going to be indicted in the Circuit Court for murder and piracy, but the children were not listed in the official indictment to be detained. The defense was hoping to cite this, using habeas corpus, in order to gain the children's release. [Such a writ, specifically calling for the release of one in custody, is know as "habeas corpus ad subjiciendum"]
–plea in abatement: The termination of legal proceedings of an action due to
some specific, formal defect in the action.
In the Amistad case, jurisdiction was the "formal defect" in the actions all other parties. The Africans' defense filed a plea in abatement on account of their belief that the courts of Connecticut did not have jurisdiction, because, by towing the Amistad to New London, Lt. Gedney illegally removed the Africans from the jurisdiction of the State of New York. This was a major debate in the District Court proceedings because, if this were to be found true, it would be necessary to dismiss the case and set the Africans free.
—warrant of seizure: An official action issued by a judge authorizing an officer
to seize certain items involved with the trial being deliberated and hold them in
legal custody.
In the Amistad case, it was a simple legal process where such a warrant was issued after Judge Judson allowed the libels and claims of various parties. The warrant then ordered the United States Marshall (Norris Wilcox) to seize all goods listed in the various libels and claims and hold them in his custody, noting which goods were libeled or claimed by which parties.
—process of monition: Issued after the filing of a libel (see above), it is a
formal order of the court directed to all parties concerned with the libel[who may
be either referred to directly in the libel, or have a related interest in the case]
to appear and "show cause" why the judgment asked for in the libel should
not be granted.
In the Amistad case, processes of monition were issued following the libels
of Lt. Gedney, Jose Ruiz, and Pedro Montez. The monitions acted as summonses, directing
to appear any parties who might object to the claims of Gedney, Ruiz, and Montez
as stated in their respective libels.
—pro forma decree: A judgment rendered by a court merely to facilitate further
proceedings by a higher court (on an appeal), not on the conviction that the judgment
is correct.
In the Amistad case, the United States Circuit Court affirmed the District
Court's ruling by this type of decree for the explicit purpose of passing it up to
the Supreme Court.
Notes
Black, Henry Campbell. Black's Law Dictionary. Fourth edition. St. Paul:
West Publishing Co., 1951.
Webster's International Dictionary, Second Edition.
