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derivative market See MARKET.

derivative possession Lawful possession by one (such as a tenant) who does not hold title.

derivative possession See POSSESSION.

derivative power Power that arises only from a grant of authority. Power may be derived, for example, by an agent from a principal, or by a head of state from constitutional or statutory provisions.

derivative power See POWER (3).

derivative security See DERIVATIVE.

derivative security See DERIVATIVE (1).

derivative settlement 1. The negotiated outcome of a derivative action. See DERIVATIVE ACTION. 2. A persons legal-reSidence status that is acquired though another person. as with a child through one or both parents.

derivative settlement See SETTLEMENT (2) .

derivative suit See DERIVATIVE ACTION (1).

derivative suit See DERIVATIVE ACTION (1).

derivative title See TITLE (2).

derivative work See WORK (2).

derivative-jurisdiction doctrine The principle that a case is not properly removable unless it is within the subject-matter jurisdiction of the state court from which it is removed.

derivative-use immunity See use immunity under IMMUNITY (3).

derived demand Product demand that is related to another product's demand.

derived demand- See DEMAND (4).

derk of assize (a-siz). An assize associate responsible for record-keeping and other clerical and administrative fllnctions. See ASSOCIATE (3).

derogation (der-a-gay-shan), n. 1. The partial repeal or abrogation of a law by a later act that limits its scope or impairs its utility and force <statutes in derogation of the common law>. 2. Disparagement; depreciation in value or estimation <some argue that the derogation of family values has caused an increase in crime>. 3. Detraction, prejudice, or destruction (of a grant or right) <an attorney may be punished for derogation from professional integrity>. - derogate (der-a-gayt), vb.

derogation clause A reservation in a treaty allowing a signator to refuse to comply with certain provisions. For example, a signator may be allowed to suspend some or all of its treaty obligations during a war or other national emergency. Ifa treaty lacks an express derogation clause, then general principles governing suspension or termination of treaties govern.

derogation from grant A provision in an instrument of transfer (such as a deed) that diminishes, avoids, or otherwise limits the grant itself.

derogatory clause 1. A statutory or contractual provision proclaiming that the document in which it appears, or a part of the document, cannot be repealed or amended.o Such provisions are considered ineffective. 'The one thing a sovereign legislature cannot do is truncate its own sovereignty by restricting its successors. A parliament sovereign today must also be sovereign tomorrow. What is technically called a clausula derogatoria is therefore ineffective: non impedit clausula derogatoria quo minus ab eadem potestate res dissolvantur a qua constituuntur (a derogatory clause does not prevent things from being dissolved by the same power which created them)." F.A.R. Bennion, Statutory Interpretation § 140, at 313 (3d ed.1997). 2. A clause that a testator inserts secretly in a will, containing a provision that any later will not having that precise clause is invalid.o A derogatory clause seeks to protect against a later will extorted by undue influence, duress, or violence. - Also termed clausula derogativa; clausula derogatoria.

DES abbr. DELIVERED EX SHIP.

descend To pass (a decedent's property) by intestate succession.

descendant (di-sen-dant), One who follows in the bloodline of an ancestor, either lineally or collaterally. Examples are children and grandchildren. Cf. ASCENDANT. - descendant, adj.

descendibility offuture interests The legal possibility that a future interest (such as a remainder or an executory interest) can legally pass by inheritance.

descendible adj. (Of property) capable of passing by descent or being inherited. See HERITABLE.

descent 1. The acquisition of real property by law, as by inheritance; the passing of intestate real property to heirs. See SUCCESSION (2). Cf. DISTRIBUTION (1); PURCHASE (2). 2. The fact or process of originating from a common ancestor. Cf. ASCENT. descend, vb.

descent and distribution 1. See intestate succession under SUCCESSION (2). 2. Broadly, the rules by which a decedent's property is passed, whether by intestate succession or by will. See DISTRIBUTION.

descent cast The devolution of realty that has been acquired by disseisin, abatement, or intrusion, upon an heir whose ancestor died intestate. This tolled the real owner's right of entry until the owner brought a legal action. Also termed descent that tolls entry.

descriptio personae (di-skrip-shee-oh par-soh-nee). [Law Latin] Description of the person. This phrase, typically used to identify or describe a person in a contract or deed, is not essential to a document's validity. Cf. DESIGNATIO PERSONAE.

description 1. A delineation or explanation of something by an account setting forth the subject's characteristics or qualities <description of a patentable process>. 2. A representation by words or drawing of something seen or heard or otherwise experienced <description of the criminal> <description of the accident>. 3. An enumeration or specific identification of something <description of items in the estate>. 4. LEGAL DESCRIPTION. 5. Patents. In a U.S. patent application, the section that (1) comprehensively char acterizes the invention in language that is clear and complete enough to enable anyone of ordinary skill in the relevant art to make and use the invention; (2) explains the best mode for using the invention; and (3) usu. includes an explanation of drawings that are part of the application. The detailed description typically makes up the largest portion of the application's specification. - Also termed (in sense 5) enabling disclosure; written description.

descriptive comparative law The inventory of legal systems (past and present) as a whole, as well as of individual rules that these systems establish for several categories of legal relations . Descriptive comparative law is sometimes considered one of three subsets of comparative law, the other two being comparative legislation and comparative history of law. See COMPARATIVE LEGISLATION; COMPARATIVE LEGAL HISTORY.

descriptive comparative law- See COMPARATIVE LAW.

descriptive mark See descriptive trademark under TRADEMARK.

descriptive trademark See TRADEMARK.

descriptive word Trademarks. A term that portrays a general characteristic or function of a product or service. A descriptive word may not be registered as a trademark unless it has acquired secondary meaning in the minds of consumers such that it is directly associated with one brand. "A trader cannot appropriate to his exclusive use words or symbols which (in the application he is to make of them) are public property. The right of all to use descriptive words in their ordinary and usual meaning must not be restricted. No sign or form of words may be appropriated as a trade-mark, for use in its primary meaning, which. from the nature of the fact conveyed by that primary meaning, others may employ with equal truth, and with equal right, for the same purpose." Harry D. Nims, The Law of Unfair Competition and Trade-Marks 524 (1929).

desecrate vb. To divest (a thing) of its sacred character; to defile or profane (a sacred thing).

desegregation 1. The abrogation of policies that separate people of different races into different institutions and facilities (such as public schools). 2. The state of having had such policies abrogated. Cf. INTEGRATION (4). - desegregate, vb.

deserter A member of the armed forces who leaves national military service with the intention of reneging on military obligations either permanently or for the duration of a military operation; a member of the armed forces who illegally abandons a military force, often by seeking refuge in a foreign territory or by joining enemy forces.

desertion The willful and unjustified abandonment of a person's duties or obligations, esp. to military service or to a spouse or family. In family law, the five elements of spousal desertion are (1) a cessation of cohabitation, (2) the lapse of a statutory period, (3) an intention to abandon, (4) a lack of consent from the abandoned spouse, and (5) a lack of spousal misconduct that might justify the abandonment. Also termed gross neglect of duty. Cf. ABANDONMENT. - desert, vb.

deserts See JUST DESERTS.

design 1. A plan or scheme. 2. Purpose or intention combined with a plan.

design around vb. Patents. To make something that performs the same function or has the same physical properties as (a patented product or process) but in a way different enough from the original that it does not infringe the patent. Cf. DOCTRINE OF EQUIVALENTS.

design claim The Single claim allowed in an application for a design patent, incorporating by reference the drawing and other specifications. The brief claim typically starts with "an ornamental design for and ends with as shown" or "as shown and described." Cf. omnibus claim.

design claim See PATENT CLAIM.

design defect An imperfection occurring when the seller or distributor could have reduced or avoided a foreseeable risk of harm by adopting a reasonable alternative deSign, and when, as a result of not using the alternative, the product or property is not reasonably safe. Cf. manufacturing defect.

design defect- See DEFECT.

design patent A patent granted for a new, original, and ornamental design for an article of manufacture; a patent that protects a product appearance or nonfunctional aspects. - Design patents which, unlike utility patents, have a term of only 14 years from the date the patent is granted are similar to copyrights. 36 USCA § 171.

design patent See PATENT (3).

design review A process by which a building permit is withheld until the proposed building meets the architectural standards established by land-use regulations. Also termed architectural review.

design specification See STATEMENT OF WORK.

designate See DESIGNEE.

designated public forum See PUBLIC FORUM.

designated public forum Public property that has not traditionally been open for public assembly and debate but that the government has opened for use by the public as a place for expressive activity, such as a public-university facility or a publicly owned theater. Unlike a traditional public forum, the government does not have to retain the open character of a designated public forum. Also, the subject matter of the expression permitted in a designated public forum may be limited to accord with the character of the forum; reasonable, content-neutral time, place, and manner restrictions are generally permissible. But any prohibition based on the content of the expression must be narrowly drawn to effectuate a compelling state interest, as with a traditional public forum. Also termed limited public forum; nontraditional public forum.

designating petition A document used to designate a candidate for a political-party nomination at a primary election or for election to a party position.

designatio personae (dez-ag-nay-shee-oh par-soh-nee), [Law Latin] Designation of the person by class or category rather than by name, as "the children of A." This phrase was used to specifically identify a person in a contract or deed, often as a word oflimitation (e.g., "to my eldest son"). Cf. DESCRIPTIO PERSONAE.

design-defect exclusion See EXCLUSION (3).

design-defect exclusion- A provision in some umbrella policies and some older commercial general liability policies, excluding coverage for bodily injury arising from the failure of the insured's product to perform its intended function because of a defect or deficiency in its design, formula, specifications, instructions, or advertising materials.

designedly adv. Willfully; intentionally.

designee A person who has been designated to perform some duty or carry out some specific role. - Also termed designate (dez-ig-nat), n.

designer defense A novel defense based on diminished capacity attributed to stress or impairment. The phrase derives from the fact that the defense is tailored to the defendant and the circumstances of the crime. Examples include extraordinary reactions to snack food (the Twinkie defense), unconsciousness or sleepwalking, and postpartum psychosis. See AUTOMATISM.

designer defense- See DEFENSE (1).

designer drug See DRUG.

designer drug- A chemical substance that is created to duplicate the pharmacological effects of controlled substances, often by using the same chemicals contained in controlled substances, but manipulating their formulas.

design-specification contract See build-to-print contract.

design-specification contract See build-to-print contract under CONTRACT.

desist To stop or leave off. See CEASE-AND-DESIST ORDER.

desk audit A review of a civil-service position to determine whether its duties and responsibilities fit the prescribed job classification and pay scale.

desk audit- See AUDIT.

desperate debt 1. Uncollectable debt. 2. A debt taken on by one who is either insolvent or on the verge of insolvency.

desperate debt- See DEBT.

despitus (di-spi-tas or des-pi-tas). [Law Latin]. 1. Contempt. 2. A contemptible person.

despoil (di-spoil), vb. To deprive (a person) of possessions illegally by violence or by clandestine means; to rob. despoliation (di-spoh-lee-ay-shdn), despoilment, n.

desponsation (dee-spon-say-shan). Archaic. The act of betrothal; the act of contracting for marriage.

despostism (das-pa-tiz-am), 1. A government by a ruler with absolute, unchecked power. 2. Total power or controlling influence.

despot (des-pat), n. 1. A ruler with absolute power and authority. 2. A tyrant. despotic (di-spot-ik), adj.

destination 1. The predetermined end of a course, as of a voyage or package. 2. The act ofappointment, esp. in a will; a designation. 3. Scots law. The nomination of heirs esp. in a certain order - by law or under a will. 'The series of heirs called to the succession of heritable or moveable property, either by the provision of the law or by the will of the proprietor, is, generally speaking, termed a destination; but the term is usually applied, in a more limited sense, to a nomination of successors in a certain order, regulated by the will of the proprietor." William Bell, Bell's Dictionarv and Digest of the Law of Scotland 320 (George Watson ed., 7th ed. 1890). 4. Scots law. The line of successors so appointed.

destination bill of lading A bill procured to be issued at the destination point or any other place than the place of shipment. UCC § 7-305.

destination bill of lading- See BILL OF LADING.

destination contract A contract in which a seller bears the risk afloss until the goods arrive at the destination. UCC § 2-509. Cf. shipment contract.

destination contract- See CONTRACT.

destination du pere de famille (des-tee-nah-syawn doo pair da fa-mee). [French" destination of the father of the family"]. 1. Civil law. The legal standing of the owner of two estates that would be subject to a servitude if they were not owned by the same person. When the two estates cease to be owned by the same owner, a servitude comes into existence if (1) the servitude is apparent from external signs, such as a roadway or a pipeline, or (2) the common owner recorded a declaration establishing the destination. La. eiv. Code art. 741. 2. A property use that the owner has intentionally established on one part of the property in favor of another part.

destinatione (des-ti-nay-shee-oh-nee). [Law Latin). By destination or appointment of an heir. The phrase appeared in reference to the process, made possible through a destination clause, by which an heir was appointed to a succession in a certain order. See DESTINATION.

destitute (des-ti-t[y]oot), adj. 1. Deprived; bereft. 2. Not possessing the necessaries of life; lacking possessions and resources; indigent.

destitutive fact See divestitive fact under FACT.

destitutive fact- See divestitive fact.

destructibility The capability of being destroyed by some action, turn of events, or operation of law. destructible, adj.

destructibility of contingent remainders The common-law doctrine requiring a future interest to vest by the time it is to become possessory or else be totally destroyed, the interest then reverting to the grantor. The doctrine could be avoided by the use of trustees to preserve contingent remainders. This doctrine has been abolished in all but a few American. jurisdictions; the abolishing statutes are commonly termed anti-destructibility statutes. Also termed destructibility rule. 'The destructibility rule still exists in its old common-law form in Florida. Various authors have suggested that it also exists unchanged in Arkansas, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylliania, South Carolina, and Tennessee; but there are no statutes or recent decisions to clarify the rule's status in these states." Thomas F. Bergin & Paul G. Haskell, Preface to Estates in Land and Future Interests 79 nA6 (2d ed.1984).

destructible trust See TRUST.

destruction 1. The act of destroying or demolishing; the ruining of something. 2. Harm that substantially detracts from the value of property, esp. personal property. 3.The state of having been destroyed.

desuetude (des-wa-t[y]ood). 1. Lack of use; obsolescence through disuse. 2. The doctrine holding that if a statute or treaty is left unenforced long enough, the courts will no longer regard it as having any legal effect even though it has not been repealed. "[T]he doctrine of desuetude has had in all legal systems a very limited and cautious application. For the anachronistic statute a better remedy may be found through reinterpretation in the light of new conditions; as Gray remarks with some irony. 'It is not as speedy or as simple a process to interpret a statute out of existence as to repeal it, but with time and patient skill it can often be done.'" Lon L Fuller, Anatomy of the Law 38 (1968) (quoting John Chipman Gray, The Nature and Sources of Law 192 (1921 i). "There is no doctrine of desuetude in English law, so a statute never ceases to be in force merely because it is obsolete. Normally there must be an express repeal, but the whole or part of an enactment may be impliedly repealed by a later statute." Rupert Cross, Statutory Interpretation 3 (1976).

detachiare (di-tak-ee-air-ee or di-tash-ee-air-ee), vb. [Law Latin]. To seize a person or property by a writ of attachment or other legal remedy.

detainee A person held in custody, confined, or delayed by an authority, such as law enforcement or a government.

detainer 1. The action of detaining, withholding, or keeping something in one's custody.

detection The act ofdiscovering or revealing something that was hidden, esp. to solve a crime. "There is a clear distinction between inducing a person to do an unlawful act and setting a trap to catch him in the execution of a criminal plan of his own conception. There is also a distinction between the terms 'detection' and 'entrapment,' as applied to the activities of law enforcement officers. Legitimate detection of crime occurs when officers test a suspected person by offering him an oppor· tunity to transgress the law in such manner as is usual in the activity alleged to be unlawful. On the other hand, entrapment occurs when officers induce a person to violate the law when he would not otherwise do so." 21 Am. Jur. 2d Criminal Law § 202 (1981).

detente (day-tahnt). [French) 1. The relaxation of tensions between two or more parties, esp. nations. 2. A policy promoting such a relaxation of tensions. 3. A period during which such tensions are relaxed. Cf. ENTENTE; ALLIANCE.

detentio (di-ten-shee-oh), n. [Latin] 1. Roman law. See possessio naturalis under POSSESSIO. 2. Detention; detainment, as opposed to captio ("taking"). See possessio naturalis under POSSESSIO.

detention 1. The act or fact of holding a person in custody; confinement or compulsory delay. detain, vb.

detention hearing See HEARING.