Journal Law and Legal Definition
Journal is a record, usually daily, of the proceedings and transactions of a legislative body or an organization. The U.S. constitution directs that “each House shall keep a Journal of its Proceedings, and from time to time publish the same, excepting such Parts as may in their Judgment require Secrecy; and the Yeas and Nays of the Members of either House on any question shall, at the Desire of one fifth of those Present, be entered on the Journal.” [USCS Const. Art. I, § 5, Cl 3].
In maritime law, journal is the book kept on board of a ship or other vessel, which contains an account of the ship's course, with a short history of every occurrence during the voyage.
