pre-audience
Definition
- Noun:
- Legal term: "pre-audience" refers to the right or privilege of a lawyer to be heard before another in a court of law; the right to speak first or to have precedence in argument.
- Priority of hearing: The order of precedence among barristers or advocates, determining who may address the court first.
Usage Examples
- Noun:
- The senior counsel claimed pre-audience in the appeal case. (The senior lawyer asserted the right to speak first.)
- Pre-audience is traditionally granted to the King's Counsel before junior barristers. (The privilege of being heard first is given to senior advocates.)
Advanced Usage
"to have pre-audience": to possess the right to be heard before others in a legal proceeding.
- In the House of Lords, the Lord Chancellor had pre-audience over other peers. (The Lord Chancellor could speak first in debates.)
"to grant pre-audience": to officially assign the right of precedence.
- The court granted pre-audience to the Attorney General. (The court allowed the Attorney General to speak before other lawyers.)
Variants and Related Words
Audience (n): a formal interview or hearing; the act of listening.
- He requested an audience with the judge. (He asked for a meeting or hearing.)
Precedence (n): the condition of being considered more important than someone or something else; priority.
- In court, the Queen's Counsel takes precedence over junior barristers. (The senior lawyer has priority in order.)
Synonyms
- Priority: the right to be heard or dealt with before others.
- Precedence: the order of importance or rank, especially in legal contexts.
- Right of audience: the entitlement to appear and speak in court.
Phrasal Verbs
Related Idioms
"To take precedence": to have priority over others.
- The lead counsel took precedence in the trial. (The lead lawyer spoke first.)
"To have the floor": to have the right to speak in a formal setting.
- The barrister had the floor during the opening statement. (The lawyer was allowed to speak without interruption.)