Important Legal Maxims for Law Students

Legal Maxims for CLAT 2025: Legal maxims are brief phrases that describe legal concepts, generally in Latin. They play an important part in tests such as CLAT by assisting test takers in interpreting legal sections. Familiarity with these maxims assists exam preparation, although memorisation is unnecessary because the examination does not need outside knowledge. Knowing these maxims helps you apply legal ideas to real-life circumstances.

This Story also Contains

1. How legal maxims can help in cracking law exams?
2. What are the Legal Maxims?
3. Important Legal Maxims for Law Entrance Exams
4. A Few Example Questions Related To Legal Maxims
5. Legal Maxims References

For a student of Law, Legal maxims are like a pathway to reach and understand the goal of the provisions. They essentially asked in several law entrance examinations. These legal maxims are a part of the Legal Aptitude or Legal Awareness section of almost all major law admission tests including CLAT, AILET, MH CET Law, SLAT, PU BA LLB, DU LLB, BHU LLB and PU LLB. As law is not a new concept, it is an archaic, substantive and an emblem of solidarity. In medieval times, law was practised in Latin and so are the Legal maxims majorly seen in Latin.

Careers360, with the assistance of several legal sources and law test specialists, has compiled a collection of legal maxims or legal terms that can assist law students like you in studying for the law examinations, particularly the Legal Awareness (Legal Knowledge) segment.

How legal maxims can help in cracking law exams?

This is one of the most important and critically logical questions, one may have if going through a list of hundreds of legal terminologies at one go. The answer to this question is, Yes! If you read and memorise at least five legal maxims every day, there are chances that you answer most of the questions that may come in the Legal Aptitude section of a law entrance test. Interestingly, the Legal Awareness/Legal Aptitude/Legal Knowledge section covers a major part of the law exam and thus solving a good number of questions from that section will eventually give the test takers an edge over others.

Careers360 brings you a list of over 100 Legal Maxims that will be quite useful to crack the law examinations. The Legal Maxims figuring here have their word meanings with them which can help you in knowing the exact legal term and its literal definition and connotation.

Also read | How to prepare for CLAT 2025

What are the Legal Maxims?

Legal maxims are set principles or propositions of law that are often used as phrases to establish a principle or a provision of law. They are like legal proverbs, making judges and lawyers apt for Legal studies. An aspirant of CLAT must be aware of certain basic legal maxims

• These general principles act as guiding principles to interpret law and make decisions. They act as a needle to the Campus directing the Law fraternity towards the fair and consistent ruling based on legal knowledge and reasoning.

• Latin maxims are an easy way to express complex legal concepts. This allows the efficiency for quicker comprehension and avoids the need for length the explanations while proceedings or while providing the judgement. It is a symbolisation of the law that is long practised.

• But it is also important to keep in mind that these are not binding laws. However, they hold significant weight and influence because they represent well-established legal principles for their interpretation. Specific cases needed to be considered. The addiction to these maxims has changed with the evolution of time as the judgement delivery process has also changed.

Law aspirants may note that the list of Legal Maxims is just a selective one and will be updated accordingly.

Also read | 100 Important English Words For CLAT Exam

Important Legal Maxims for Law Entrance Exams

Careers360 has compiled an extensive list of legal maxims and their meaning to help students in their preparation. Here are the important legal maxims for judicial exams pdf:

• ab extra - from outside

• ab initio - from the beginning

• actio personalis moritur cum persona - a personal action dies with the person

• actus reus - a guilty act or deed

• ad hoc- for this purpose

• alibi - at another place elsewhere

• amicus curiae - a friend of the court

• ante - before

• audi alteram partem - hear the other side

• bona fide - sincere; in good faith

• caveat emptor - let the purchaser beware

• consensus - unanimously or by general consent

• consensus ad idem - agreement as to the same thing

• contra - to the contrary

• corpus- body

• corpus deliciti - the body ie. the gist of crime

• damnum sine injuria - damage without legal injury

• de facto - in fact

• de jure - rightful, by right

• doli in capax - incapable of crime

• ex-gratia - out of kindness, voluntarily

• ex-parte - proceeding bought by one person in the absence of another

• ex-post facto - because of the subsequent act

• ex turpi causa non oritur actio - no action arises on an immoral contract

• ignoratia facti excusat,ignoratia juris non excusat - ignorance of fact is excusable but ignorance of law is not

• in camera - in private

• in futuro - in the future

• in personam - against the person

• injuria non-excusat injuriam - a wrong does not excuse a wrong

• interim - in the meanwhile

• ipso facto - by that very fact

• jus naturale - natural justice

• mala fide - in bad faith

• mens rea - guilty state of mind

• nexus - connection

• post mortem - after death

• prima facie - on the face of it

• quantum - how much amount

• qui facit per alium, facit per se - he who acts through another acts himself

• quid pro quo - consideration; something for something

• res judicata - once decided cannot be decided again

• respondent superior - let the principal answer

• res ipsa loquitor - the thing speaks for itself.

• Salus populi est suprema lex - the safety of the people is the supreme law

• Sub-nominee - under the name of

• sub silentio - in silence

• ubi jus ibi remedium - where there is right there is a remedy

• verbatim - word by word or exactly

• volenti non-fit injuria - an injury is not done when consent is given

• vide - see

To learn more Legal Maxims, please down our eBook PDF Top 300 Legal Maxims For CLAT preparation

A Few Example Questions Related To Legal Maxims

Legal Maxims come in various exams like CLAT, AILET, MH CET, AP LAW CET, and TS LAW CET. So it is important to understand what type of questions can be expected in various examinations.

1. What are Legal Maxims?

a. Legal Proclamations.

b. Legal phrase referring to legal principles.

c. Legal orders.

d. All of the above

Ans- B

Explanation- A legal maxim is a legal phrase referring to legal principals, mainly in latin language.

2. What is 'Actus Non Facit Reum Nisi Mens Sit Rea'?

a. An act as a fact does not make a person guilty.

b. An act of a person while guilty is not necessarily wrong.

c. An act does not make a person guilty unless there is a guilty mind.

d. An act of guilty mind makes a person factually wrong.

Ans- C

Explanation- The maxim Actus Non Facit Reum Nisi Mens Sit Rea is a latin legal maxim which means An act does not make a person guilty unless there is a guilty mind.

3. In the legal maxim Actus Non Facit Reum Nisi Mens Sit Rea, 'mens rea' refers to

a. Guilty Mind

b. Person's intention.

c. Guilty conscience.

d. Guilty act.

Ans- A

Explanation- 'Mens Rea' refers to 'Guilty Mind' in Latin. It is one of the components for committing a crime

4. In the maxim 'Actus Non-Facit Reum Nisi Mens Sit Rea' , Mens Rea is usually followed by

a. Guilty act

b. A lawful wrong

c. Failure to perform one's right.

d. None of the above.

Ans - A

Explanation- 'Mens Rea' is usually followed by 'Actus Rea' which refers to a Guilty Act with regards to the furtherance of a Guilty mind's act.

5. Actus Non-Facit Reum Nisi Mens Sit Rea is applicable in which of the following scenario-

a. A person 'X' admits to having bumped into 'Y' causing him to fall over.

b. A person 'X' conspiring to bump into 'Y' so that he falls over.

c. A person 'X' admits to having conspired to bump into 'Y' causing him to fall over.

d. All of the above.

Ans- C

Explanation- Here, mens rea is accompanied by actus rea and X admits to have conspired against bumping into Y.

6. The maxim 'Actus Non-Facit Reum Nisi Mens Sit Rea' is not applicable in

a. Vicarious Liability.

b. Sedition.

c. Both (a) and (b).

d. Neither

Ans- A

Explanation- In vicarious liability, a servant committing a crime on his own accord still results in the master being held liable. Hence, an exception to this maxim.

7. Actus Non-Facit Reum Nisi Mens Sit Rea applies to

a. Civil cases.

b. Criminal cases.

c. Both (a) and (b).

d. Neither.

Ans- B

Explanation- Mens Rea is not an essential element for imposing a penalty for breach of civil liability or obligation.

8. The maxim Ad Valorem means

a. Additional Value.

b. According to Value.

c. According to volume.

d. None of the above.

Ans- B

Explanation- Ad Valorem is a Latin maxim. Ad Valorem tax is a tax based on the assessment of the value of an item.

9. The term 'Ad Valorem' is usually applicable in

a. Taxation

b. Criminal Law

c. Constitution

d. Both (b) and (c)

Ans- A

Explanation- The term 'Ad Valorem Tax' refers to the computation/assessment of taxes according to their value. Hence, prominent in taxation.

10. The term 'Ad Valorem Tax' refers to

a. Tax imposed on the price charged in the market.

b. Tax imposed on the producers irrespective of the level of output produced.

c. Tax imposed as a levy on the units of output produced.

d. Tax imposed on the income of producers.

Answer - A

Explanation

'Ad Valorem Tax' is a type of tax that is calculated based on the percentage of the value of a transaction. It is based on the assessed value of an item rather than its fixed amount.his means that as the price or value of the item increases, so does the amount of tax owe.

And to practice more such questions on Legal Maxims you can download our eBook - Legal Maxims Practice Questions

Also check important topics for Law exams

• Family Law
• Hindu Law
• Evidence act
• Muslim Law

Legal Maxims References

Since Legal maxims donot have a specific book but aspirants can read it from a few reliable sources such as:

1. Legal Lexicon: Maxims of Law, Maxims of Equity, Maxims of Statutes, Maxims of Contracts, Maxims of Property" by F. Edward Thomas

2. ⁠Few landmark Judgement Commentaries

3. ⁠Black’s law dictionary