Amicus curiae

[amit sharma]

Hi there,

i was just wondering what does the word "Amicus Curiae" mean ? It is used quite often in newspapers but could not find the meaning.

Also elaborate on its usage please.

[riverkid]

Hi there,

i was just wondering what [does] the words "Amicus Curiae" mean ? It is used quite often in newspapers but could not find the meaning.

Also elaborate on its usage please.

Just off the top of my head, I believe it means, "friend of the court" and it relates to a lawyer/person who isn't part of the prosecution or defence.

Again, off the top of my head and memory, both of which can be faulty at times, in the famous Brown vs The Board of Education, Topeka, Kansas, the court accepted briefs from sociologists, psychologists and other professionals to show that the policy of "Separate but equal" was not at all equal; that it weighed heavily upon Blacks socially, economically and emotionally.

[riverkid]

Amicus curiae (plural amici curiae) is a legal Latin phrase, literally translated as "friend of the court", that refers to someone, not a party to a case, who volunteers to offer information on a point of law or some other aspect of the case to assist the court in deciding a matter before it. The information may be a legal opinion in the form of a brief - testimony that has not been solicited by any of the parties - or a learned treatise on a matter that bears on the case. The decision whether to admit the information lies with the discretion of the court.

Amicus curiae - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, 347 U.S. 483 (1954),[1] is a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court, which overturned earlier rulings going back to Plessy v. Ferguson in 1896, by declaring that state laws which established separate public schools for black and white students denied black children equal educational opportunities.

Brown v. Board of Education - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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[amit sharma]

Thank you Sir for a very prompt reply.
Did not hope it that fast.
Would really learn a lot from here.