The Law Dictionary for Everyone
“Due care” is a term used to refer to the degree of care that a “reasonable person” would take in a particular situation. For example, due care is expected when someone mails a package. This means that the person should take all of the necessary precautions to ensure that the package will arrive at its definition safely and intact. The […]
Read moreThe term “dram shop” is a legal term that refers to a type of business where alcoholic beverages are served to the public. Examples of dram shops include bars or taverns, and a “dram” is a measurement of a small amount of liquid, namely spirits. Thirty-eight of the 50 states in the U.S. follow the Dram Shop Act. The Dram […]
Read moreThe term accretion is used in real estate law to refer to an increase of land due to the accumulation of soil on the shoreline of a lake, stream, or the sea. While accretion is a gift bestowed on landowners by Mother Nature, land can also decrease in size through erosion and avulsion. To explore this concept, consider the following […]
Read moreDiminished capacity is a legal defense used by a defendant to argue that, while he admits to having broken the law, he should not be held fully criminally liable due to his “diminished” mental state at the time. Diminished capacity is a partial defense, which requires the defendant to have committed the crime while in a very specific state of […]
Read moreA declaratory judgment is a judgment from a court that defines the legal relationship that exists between the parties to a lawsuit, as well as their rights in the matter. A declaratory judgment does not make a conclusive decision on a case. Rather, it is used for the purpose of settling a dispute so that the case can progress freely […]
Read moreThe term “solicitor” is mainly used in England to describe attorneys who handle mostly office work, as opposed to going to court to litigate cases. In the U.S., the term is typically used to refer to a chief law enforcement officer, but it is generally not used to describe attorneys. Another important position that employs the solicitor term is the […]
Read moreThe idea of an arm’s length transaction relates to an agreement between two people or entities that are independent of one another. This means that they do not have a prior relationship with one another, such as being related to each other, having a prior deal with each other, or that one party controls the other in some way. In […]
Read moreA bailor is a person who trusts another person to keep property safe until that property can be returned to its owner. This agreement is usually established under a contract of bailment. The bailor is not always the owner of the property, but may instead be entrusted by the owner of the property. An example of a bailor is someone […]
Read moreThe legal term abuse of process refers to the act of using the legal process – during a legal proceeding – to harass another party to the suit, to intentionally incur costs with the intent that the other party will be ordered to pay those costs, or to delay the court action. Abuse of process is a tort that may […]
Read moreAn abstract of judgment is a document created by a court that shows detailed information about a judgment rendered in court. The abstract of judgment lists the date of the judgment and the amount, as well as contact information for both the debtor and the creditor. Also included in the abstract of judgment is the rate of interest that the […]
Read more