Latae sententiae and ferendae sententiae
Latae sententiae (Latin meaning "of a broad judgment") and ferendae sententiae (Latin meaning "of a brought judgment") are ways sentences are imposed in the Catholic Church in its canon law.
A latae sententiae penalty is a penalty that is inflicted ipso facto, automatically, by force of the law itself, at the very moment a law is contravened, hence a broadly applied judgment. A ferendae sententiae penalty is a penalty that is inflicted on a guilty party only after a case has been brought and decided by an authority in the Church.
The 1983 Code of Canon Law, which binds Catholics of the Latin Church, inflicts latae sententiae censures for certain forbidden actions. The current canon law that binds members of the Eastern Catholic Churches, the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, does not include latae sententiae penalties.