Your Free Online Legal Dictionary • Featuring Black’s Law Dictionary, 2nd Ed.

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ASSIGNMENT OF DOWER

Ascertaining a widow’s right of dower by laying out or marking off one-third of her “deceased husband’s lands, and setting off the same for her use during life. Bettis v. Mc- Nider,

ASSUMPTION OF RISK

A term or condition in a contract of employment, either express or implied from the circumstances of the employment, by which the employ^ agrees that dangers of injury ordinarily or obviously incident

ATTACHE

A person attached to the Buite of an ambassador or to a foreign legation.

ATTORNEY

In the most general sense this term denotes an agent or substitute, or one who is appointed and authorized to act in the place or stead of another. In re Ricker, 60

AUDITOR

A public officer whose function is to examine and pass upon the accounts and vouchers of officers who have received and expended public money by lawful authority. In practice. An officer (or

AURUM REGIN

Queen’s gold. A royal revenue belonging to every queen consort during her marriage with the king.

AUTRE VIE

Another’s life. A person holding an estate for or during the life of another is called a tenant “pur autre vie,” or “pur terme d’autre vie.” Litt.

AVERIA

In old English law. This term was applied to working cattle, such as horses, oxen, etc.

AVOW

In pleading. To acknowledge and justify an act done. To make an avowry. For example, when replevin Is brought for a thing distrained, and the party taking claims that he had a

ASSISE OF DARREIN PRESENTMENT

A writ of assise which formerly lay when a man or his ancestors under whom he claimed presented a clerk to a benefice, who was instituted, and afterwards, upon the next avoidance,

ACTIO PUBLICIANA

An action which lay for one who had lost a titling of which he had bona fide obtained possession, before he had gained a property in it, in order to have it

ACTIONABLE FRAUD

Deception practiced in order to induce another to part with property or surrender some legal right; a false representation made with an iutention to deceive; may be committed by stating what is

ACTRIX

Lat A female actor; a female plaintiff. Calvin. Acts indicate the intention. 8 Co. 1406; Broom, Max. 301.

AD FACTUM PRIESTANDUM

In Scotch law. A name descriptive of a class of obligations marked by unusual severity. A debtor who is under an obligation of this kind cannot claim the benefit of the act

AD INSTANTIAM

At the instance. 2 Mod. 44. Ad instantiam partis, at the instance of a party. Hale, Com. Law, 28.

AD SECTAM

At the suit of. Commonly abbreviated to ads. Used in entering and indexing the names of cases, where it is desired that the name of the defendant should come first. Thus, “B.

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