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fixture Personal property that is attached to land or a building and that is regarded as an irremovable part of the real property, such as a fireplace built into a home. See UCC § 9-102(a)(41).o Historically, personal property becomes a fixture when it is physically fastened to or connected with the land or building and the fastening or connection was done to enhance the utility of the land or building. If personal property has been attached to the land or building and enhances only the chattel's utility, it is not a fixture. For example, i fbricks are purposely stacked to form a wall, a fixture results. But if the bricks are merely stacked for convenience until used for some purpose, they do not form a fixture. Also termed permanent fixture; immovable fixture. Cf. IMPROVEMENT. "A fixture can best be defined as a thing which, although originally a movable chattel, is by reason of its annexation to, or association in use with land, regarded as a part of the land .... The law of fixtures concerns those situations where the chattel annexed still retains a separate identity in spite of annexation, for example a furnace or a light fixture. Where the chattel annexed loses such identity, as in the case of nails. boards, etc., the problem becomes one of accession." Ray Andrews Brown. The Law of Personal Property § 137, at 698 & n.1 (2d ed. 1955). "Broadly. goods can be classified for the purposes of [UCC §l 9-313 into three categories: those that remain 'pure goods,' those so substantially integrated into real estate as to become real estate themselves, 'pure realty,' and those in the gray area that would pass in a deed to the real estate but that retain separate status as personal property. These last are fixtures." 4 James J. White & Robert S. Summers. Uniform Commercial Code § 33-8, at 338 (4th ed. 1995).

fixture filing The act or an instance of recording, in public real-estate records, a security interest in personal property that is intended to become a fixture. See UCC § 9-102(a)(40). The creditor files a financing statement in the real-property records of the county where a mortgage on the real estate would be filed. A fixture-filing financing statement must contain a deSCription of the real estate.

FJC abbr. FEDERAL JUDICIAL CENTER.

FKA abbr. Formerly known as. Also rendered FIKIA; fka;f!kla.

flag 1. A usu. rectangular piece ofcloth, bunting, or other material decorated with a distinctive design and used as a symbol or Signal. 2. Something symbolized by the display of a flag, such as a ship or nationality. See DUTY OF THE FLAG; LAW OF THE FLAG.

flag desecration The act of mutilating, defacing, burning, or flagrantly misusing a flag. Flag desecration is constitutionally protected as a form of free speech. United States v. Eichman, 496 U.S. 310, 110 S.Ct. 2404 (1990).

flag mast See MAST (1).

flag of convenience A national flag flown by a ship not because the ship or its crew has an affiliation with the nation, but because the lax controls and modest fees and taxes imposed by that nation have attracted the owner to register it there. After World War II, shipowners began registering their ships in countries such as Panama, Liberia, and Honduras to avoid expensive and restrictive national regulation of lahor, safety, and other matters. Since the late 1950s, there has been increasing international pressure to require a "genuine link" between a ship and its flag state, but this reform has been slow in coming. Abbr. FOC.

flag of truce A white flag used as a signal when one belligerent wishes to communicate with the other in the field. The bearers of such a flag may not be fired on, injured, or taken prisoner, as long as they carry out their mission in good faith.

flag state Maritime law. The state under whose flag a ship is registered .o A ship may fly the flag of one state only.

flagrans bellum (flay-granz bel-am). [Latin "raging war"] A war currently being waged.

flagrans crimen (flay-granz cri-man). [Latin], A crime in the very act of its commission or of recent occurrence; a fresh crime.

flagrante bello (fla-gran-tee bel-oh). [Latin], During an actual state of war.

flag-state control The exercise of authority by a state over vessels that fly under its flag to ensure compliance with domestic and international safety and environmental laws and regulations. Cf. COASTALSTATE CONTROL; PORT-STATE CONTROL.

flash-of-genius rule The now-defunct principle that a device is not patentable if it was invented as the result of trial and error rather than as a "flash of creative genius." The rule, which takes its name from language in Cuno Engineering Corp. v. Automatic Devices Corp., 314 U.S. 84, 91, 62 S.Ct. 37,41 (1941), was legislatively overturned in 1952. 35 USCA § 103.

flat adv. Without an allowance or charge for accrued interest <the stock was sold flat>.

flat- A house in a larger block; an apartment.

flat sentence See determinate sentence under SENTENCE.

flat bond A bond that trades without accrued inter" est.

flat bond- See BOND (3).

flat cancellation The cancellation of an insurance policy without any charge to the insured. 3. An equitable remedy by which courts call in and annul outstanding void or rescinded instruments because they may either spawn vexatious litigation or cloud someone'g title to property. 4. Trademarks. The removal of a trademark from the Principal Register . A trademark already on the Principal Register can be challenged by a person who claims to be damaged by the placement. For five years after a mark is allowed, it can be canceled for any reason that would have blocked allowance of the application. After that time, if the owner files a declaration under § 15, the grounds for cancellation are more restricted. See INCONTESTABILITY STATUS. Cf. OPPOSITION. cancel, vb. cancelable, adj.

flat cancellation- See CANCELLATION.

flat money See fiat money under MONEY.

flat reinsurance See REINSURANCE.

flat reinsurance Reinsurance (esp. of marine insurance) that cannot be canceled or modified.

flat sentence See determinate sentence.

flat tax See TAX.

flat tax A tax whose rate remains fixed regardless of the amount of the tax base. Most sales taxes are flat taxes. Also termed proportional tax. Cf. progressive tax; regressive tax.

flat time See TIME.

fledwite (fled-wit). 1. A discharge from an amercement (a fine) for a fugitive who turns himself or herself in to the monarch. 2. The fine set on a fugitive as the price for obtaining freedom. 3. The right to hold court and take an amercement for the offenses of beating and striking. - Also spelled jleduite. - Also termed flighwite.

flee from justice See FLIGHT.

fleet insurance See INSURANCE.

fleet insurance Insurance that covers a number of vehicles owned by the same entity.

fleet marriage See MARRIAGE (1).

fleet prison A large London jail best known for holding debtors and bankrupts in the 18th and 19th centuries. Formerly standing beside the Fleet River, it was opened in 1197 and operated almost continuously until it was closed and demolished in 1846.

fleme (fleem). An outlaw; a fugitive bondman or villein. Also spelled flem. Also termed flyma.

flemene frit (flee-man frit). The harboring or aiding of a fleme (a fugitive). - Also termed and spelled jlernenes frinthe; flemensfirth; flyman frynth; flyrnena frynthe.

flemeswite (fleemz-wit).The privilege to possess, or the actual possession of, the goods and fines of a fleme (a fugitive).

fleta seu commentarius juris anglicani (flee-ta syoo kom-an-tair-ee-as joor-is ang-gla-kay-ni). The title of an ancient treatise on English law,composed in the 13th century and first printed in 1647. The work is largely derivative, being based on Bracton's De Legibus et Consuetudinibus. The unknown author may have been a judge or lawyer who wrote the treatise while in London's Fleet prison. Often shortened to Fleta.

FLETC abbr. FEDERAL LAW ENFORCEMENT TRAINING CENTER.

flexdollars Money that an employer pays an employee, who can apply it to a choice of employee benefits.

flexible constitution A constitution that has few or no special amending procedures. The British Constitution is an example. Parliament can alter constitutional principles and define new baselines for government action through ordinary legislative processes. The Canadian Constitution also grants its legislature some limited ability to amend the Constitution by legislation.

flexible constitution- See CONSTITUTION.

flexible-rate mortgage 1. See adjustable-rate mortgage under MORTGAGE. 2. See renegotiable-rate mortgage under MORTGAGE.

flextime A work schedule that employees have discretion to alter as long as they work their required number of hours over a specified period (usu. a week).

flexweek A four-day workweek, usu. consisting of four 10-hour days.

flier policy See INSURANCE POLICY.

flier policy A policy issued at a very low rate near the end of the year for the purpose of swelling the insurance agents annual-sales figures. Also spelled flyer policy.

flight (bef. 12c), The act or an instance of fleeing, esp. to evade arrest or prosecution <the judge denied bail because the defendant is a flight risk>. - Also termed flight from prosecution; flee from justice.

flight easement See avigational easement.

flight easement- See avigational easement under EASEMENT.

flight from prosecution See FLIGHT.

flighwite See FLEDWITE.

flim flam A scheme by which a person is tricked out of money; CONFIDENCE GAME. The term originated as the name of a machine at the heart of a mid-19th-century patent case, Sloat v. Spring, 22 F. Cas. 330 (C.C.E.D. Pa. 1850). - Also termed faith and trust.

flip 1. To buy and then immediately resell securities or real estate in an attempt to turn a profit. 2. To refinance consumer loans. 3. To turn state's evidence. See TURN STATE'S EVIDENCE.

flip mortgage See MORTGAGE.

flipping 1. The legitimate practice of buying something, such as goods, real estate, or securities, at a low price and qUickly reselling at a higher price. 2. The fraudulent practice of buying property at a low price, preparing a false appraisal or other documentation showing that property has a much greater value, and quickly reselling the property for an inflated price based on the false document.

FlO abbr. Free in and out. This bill-of-Iading term means that the shipper supervises and pays for loading and unloading of cargo.

float 1. The sum of money represented by outstanding or uncollected checks. "'Float' refers to the artificial balance created due to delays in processing cred its and debits to an account." In re Cannon, 277 F.3d 838, 843 (6th Cir. 2002). 2. The delay between a transaction and the withdrawal of funds to cover the transaction. 3. The amount of a corporation's shares that are available for trading on the securities market.

float- 1. (Of a currency) to attain a value in the international exchange market solely on the basis of supply and demand <the IMF allowed the peso to float>. 2. To issue (a security) for sale on the market <PDQ Corp. floated a new series of preferred shares>. 3. To arrange or negotiate (a loan) <the bank floated a car loan to Alice despite her poor credit history>.

floatage See FLOTSAM.

floater See floating-rate note under NOTE (1).

floater insurance See INSURANCE.

floater insurance An agreement to indemnify against a loss sustained to movable property, wherever its location within the territorial limit set by the policy.

floating adj. Not fixed or settled; fluctuating; variable.

floating capital 1. Funds not allocated to a particular class of the corporation's capital stock. 2. Funds not presently invested or committed; esp., money retained for the purpose of meeting current expenditures. Also termed circulating capital.

floating capital- See CAPITAL.

floating charge See floating lien under LIEN.

floating debt Short-term debt that is continuously renewed to finance the ongoing operations of a business orgovernment.

floating debt- See DEBT.

floating easement An easement that, when created, is not limited to any specific part of the servient estate.

floating easement- See EASEMENT.

floating lien See LIEN.

floating policy See INSURANCE POLICY.

floating policy An insurance policy covering property that frequently changes in quantity or location, such as jewelry. Also termed running policy; blanket policy.

floating rate A varying interest rate that is tied to a financial index such as the prime rate.

floating rate See INTEREST RATE.

floating stock See STOCK.

floating stock Stock that is offered for sale on the open market and that has not yet been purchased; the number of outstanding shares available for trading.

floating zone See ZONE.

floating zoning See ZONING.

floating-interest bond A bond with an interest rate that moves up and down with changing economic conditions.

floating-interest bond- See BOND (3).

floating-rate note See NOTE (1).

flood insurance See INSURANCE.

flood insurance Insurance that indemnifies against a loss caused by a flood. This type of insurance is often sold privately but subsidized by the federal government.

floodgate (usu. pl.), A restraint that prevents a release of a usu. undesirable result <the new law opened the floodgates oflitigation>.

floodplain Land that is subject to floodwaters because of its level topography and proximity to a river or arroyo; esp., levelland that, extending from a riverbank, is inundated when the flow of water exceeds the channel's capacity.

floodwater See WATER.

floor 1. Parliamentary law. The part of the hall where the members of a deliberative body meet to debate issues and conduct business; esp., a legislature's central meeting place where the members sit and conduct business, as distinguished from the galleries, corridors, or lobbies <the Senate floor> <nominations from the floor>. See assignment of the floor under ASSIGNMENT (6); CLAIM THE FLOOR; HAVE THE FLOOR; OBTAIN THE FLOOR; ON THE FLOOR; privilege of the floor under PRIVILEGE (6). 2. The trading area where stocks and commodities are bought and sold on an exchange <the broker placed his buy order with the trader on the floor of the NYSE>. 3. The lowest limit <the floor for that position is $25,000 per year>.

floor amendment See AMENDMENT (3).

floor debate The legislative process of debating a proposed bill before an entire chamber rather than before a committee.

floor debate- See DEBATE.

floor planning See floor-plan financing under FINANCING.

floor price The lowest price at which a seller is willing to sell.

floor price See PRICE.

floor tax See TAX.

floor tax A tax imposed on distilled spirits stored in a warehouse.

floor-plan financing A loan that is secured by merchandise and paid off as the goods are sold. Usu. such a loan is given by a manufacturer to a retailer or other dealer (as a car dealer). Also termed floor planning. Cf. FIELD WAREHOUSING.

floor-plan financing- See FINANCING.