Legal Definitions - practice

The term "practice" has two primary meanings in a legal and professional context:

1. A Professional Business Entity

In certain licensed professions, particularly those involving direct client or patient services, a "practice" refers to a professional business operation, often of a smaller scale. It distinguishes these service-oriented businesses from general commercial enterprises and is commonly used in fields like law, medicine, and therapy.

• Example 1 (Medical): Dr. Elena Rodriguez recently opened her own general dentistry practice in a bustling urban area, offering routine check-ups, cleanings, and minor dental procedures to her patients.
  • Explanation: This illustrates "practice" as a medical professional's independent business where Dr. Rodriguez provides specialized healthcare services directly to patients.
• Example 2 (Legal): After gaining experience at a larger firm, Attorney Michael Lee decided to establish his own estate planning practice, focusing on helping individuals and families create wills, trusts, and other essential legal documents.
  • Explanation: Here, "practice" denotes Attorney Lee's independent legal business, specializing in specific legal services for individual clients, highlighting the term's use in the legal profession for smaller, specialized operations.
• Example 3 (Consulting): Maria Sanchez, a certified public accountant, runs a successful tax advisory practice, providing personalized financial consulting and tax preparation services to small businesses and individuals.
  • Explanation: This example shows "practice" referring to an accountant's professional business where she offers specialized financial services, fitting the description of a service-oriented professional business.

2. Customary or Standard Procedures/Behaviors

"Practice" can also refer to the established, customary, or expected ways of doing things within a particular group, industry, or profession. This can include "common practice" (what is typically done) or "best practice" (the most effective or recommended way). In legal contexts, these practices can be crucial for evaluating whether someone acted reasonably, met required standards, or adhered to established norms, especially in cases involving negligence or professional conduct.

• Example 1 (Industry Standard): During a construction defect lawsuit, the plaintiff's expert witness testified that the builder failed to follow the common practice of the industry by not properly waterproofing the foundation, which led to significant water damage.
  • Explanation: This example uses "common practice" to describe the standard procedures widely adopted by businesses within a particular industry. In a legal dispute, failing to adhere to such practices can be evidence of negligence, as it suggests the builder did not act reasonably according to established norms.
• Example 2 (Professional Conduct): A medical board investigated a complaint against a doctor, examining whether the doctor's diagnostic approach aligned with the recognized best practices for treating that specific condition.
  • Explanation: Here, "best practices" refers to the superior, most effective methods or procedures recognized within the medical profession for a specific task (diagnosis and treatment). This highlights the use of "practice" to denote optimal standards that professionals are expected to strive for.
• Example 3 (Organizational Norm): In an employment dispute, it was revealed that the company had a long-standing practice of providing employees with a detailed written warning before any termination, which was not followed in the plaintiff's case.
  • Explanation: This illustrates "practice" as an established, customary behavior or procedure within an organization. Such internal practices can be relevant in legal contexts to understand the expected conduct and whether an employer adhered to their own established norms.