En banc - French, meaning "on the bench." All judges of an appellate court sitting together to hear a case, as opposed to the routine disposition by panels of three judges. In the Ninth Circuit, an en banc panel consists of 11 randomly selected judges.⏎
Dismissal with prejudice - Court action that prevents an identical lawsuit from being filed later.⏎
Clerk of court - The court officer who oversees administrative functions, especially managing the flow of cases through the court. The clerk's office is often called a court's central nervous system.⏎
Declaratory judgment - A judge's statement about someone's rights. For example, a plaintiff may seek a declaratory judgment that a particular statute, as written, violates some constitutional right.⏎
Exclusionary rule - Doctrine that says evidence obtained in violation of a criminal defendant's constitutional or statutory rights is not admissible at trial.⏎