Within the context of civil law, sanctions are usually monetary fines which are levied against a party to a lawsuit or to their attorney for violating rules of procedure, or for abusing the judicial process.
This has the effect of deciding the entire action against the sanctioned party without recourse, except to the degree that an appeal or trial de novo may be allowed because of reversible error.
A judge may sanction a party during a legal proceeding, by which it is implied that they impose penalties.
Conversely (and sometimes contradictorily), the word may be used to mean "approve of", especially in an official context.
[citation needed] A legal agreement or sanction imposes approvals, rules, guidelines and penalties on conduct.