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gift in trust- See GIFT.

gift inter vivos See inter vivos gift.

gift inter vivos- See inter vivos gift under GIFT.

gift over A property gift (esp. by will) that takes effeet after the expiration of a preceding estate in the property (such as a life estate or fee simple determinable) <to Sarah for life, with gift over to Don in fee>.

gift over- See GIFT.

gift splitting See split gift.

gift splitting- See split gift under GIFT.

gift tax A tax imposed when property is voluntarily and gratuitously transterred. Under federal law, the gift tax is imposed on the donor, but some states tax the donee.

gift tax See TAX.

gifting circle See GIFTING CLUB.

gifting club A type of pyramid scheme or Ponzi scheme in which recruits make "gifts" of money to other club members with the expectation that future recruits will make "gifts" to the present recruits. Many gifting clubs limit membership to women. Club leaders usu. try to evade income-tax laws by claiming that the money paid in by a recruit is a tax-free "gift" to a club member and warning new recruits not to expect "gifts" in the future. Some states forbid gifting clubs as illegal pyramid schemes. Other states hold that the dubs are illegal lotteries. - Also termed gifting circle; sisterhood; birthday club. See PONZI SCHEME.

gifts to minors act See UNIFORM TRANSFERS TO MINORS ACT.

gift-splitting election See split g!ft under GIFT.

gift-tax exclusion See annual exclusion under EXCLUSION.

gild hall See GUILD HALL (1).

gilda mercatoria (gil-da mar-ka-tor-ee-a). [Law Latin]. A merchant guild; an incorporated society of merchants having exclusive trading rights within a town.

gilour (gi-Iar). [Law French]. A guiler; a person who cheats or deceives. Gilour referred to a person who sold false goods, such as a person who sold pewter as silver.

gilt-edged adj. (Of a security) having the highest rating for safety ofinvestment; exceptionally safe as an investment.

ginnie mae (jin-ee may). See GOVERNMENT NATIONAL MORTGAGE ASSOCIATION.

GIPSA abbr. GRAIN INSPECTION, PACKERS, AND STOCKYARD ADMINISTRATION.

girth (garth). [Old English], 1. A measure oflength, equal to a yard. This term, which was used in Saxon and early English law, was taken from the circumference of a man's body. 2. The area surrounding a church. 3. A place of sanctuary. 4. A band or strap that encircles the body of an animal to fasten something (usu. a saddle) to its back.

gisement (jis- or jiz-mant). [Law French]. Archaic. See AGISTMENT.

giser (ji-sar), vb. [Law French]. (Of an action) to lie; to be capable of being brought as a suit in court. This verb, in its inflected form gist, appeared in such phrases as ou assise ne gist point ("when an assise does not lie"), Ie action bien gist ("the action well lies"), and gist en Ie bouche ("it lies in the mouth"), and cest action gist ("this action lies").

gisetaker (jis- or jiz-tay-ar). Archaic. See AGISTER.

gist 1. The ground or essence (of a legal action) <the gist of the crime>. 2. The main point <she skimmed the brief to get the gist of it>. This noun derives from the Law French verb giser "to lie." See GISER.

gist-of-the-action doctrine The principle that a plaintiff who brings a tort claim arising from a contractual relationship must show that the contract and any contractual claim are collateral to the tort claim. The doctrine prevents plaintiffs from recasting contract claims as tort claims. This term is most common in Pennsylvania but also appears in New Jersey, Delaware, the Virgin Islands, and elsewhere.

give 1. To voluntarily transfer (property) to another without compensation <Jack gave his daughter a car on her birthday>. 2. To confer by a formal act <the First Amendment gives all citizens the right to free speech>. 3. To present for another to consider <the witness gave compelling testimony before the jury>. 4. (Of a jury) to impose or award by verdict <the jury gave the defendant the death penalty> <the jury gave the plaintiff$1,000 in damages>.

give bail court <the court ordered the accused to give bail in the amount of $10,000>. - Also termed post bail.

give color To admit, either expressly or impliedly by silence, that an opponent's allegations appear to be meritorious. In common-law pleading, a defendant's plea of confession and avoidance had to give color to the plaintiff's allegations in the complaint or the plea would be fatally defective. See COLOR (2).

give way Maritime law. (Of a vessel) to deviate from a course, or to slow down, in accordance with navigation rules, so that a second vessel may pass without altering its course.

give, devise, and bequeath To transfer property by will <I give, devise, and bequeath all the rest, residue, and remainder of my estate to my beloved daughter Sarah>. This wording has long been criticized as redundant. In modern usage, give ordinarily suffices. See BEQUEST.

given name See personal name under NAME.

giving in payment The act of discharging a debt by giving something to the creditor (with the creditor's consent) other than what was originally called for. La. Civ. Code art. 2655. The phrase is a translation of the French dation en paiement and derives from the Roman datio in solutum. See DATION EN PAIEMENT. C£ ACCORD AND SATISFACTION.

gladius (glay-dee-as), n. [Latin "sword"], Roman law. The emblem of the emperor's power, esp. the power to punish criminals. See JUS GLADlI.

glaive (glayv). A sword, lance, or horseman's staff. The glaive was one of the weapons allowed in a trial by combat.

glamour stock See growth stock (2).

glamour stock See growth stock under STOCK.

glass ceiling An actual or supposed upper limit of professional advancement, esp. for women, as a result of discriminatory practices.

glass-steagall act A federal statute that protects bank depositors by restricting the securities-related business of commercial banks, specif. by prohibiting banks from owning brokerage firms or engaging in the brokerage business. 12 USCA § 378. - Also termed Banking Act of 1933.

glebae ascriptitii See ADSCRIPTl GLEBAE.

glebe (gleeb). [fr. Latin gleba "clod of earth"],1. Roman law. The soil of an inheritance; an agrarian estate. Servi addicti glebae ("slaves bound to the land") were serfs attached to and passing with the estate. 2. Eccles. law. Land possessed as part of the endowment or revenue of a church or ecclesiastical benefice. "Diocesan glebe land forms the largest section of ecclesiastical conveyancing work by virtue of the large number of glebe properties which are held in each diocese. Such land is governed primarily by the Endowments and Glebe Measure 1976 ... ,which in technical terms defines 'glebe land' as 'land vested in the incumbent of a benefice (when the benefice is full) as part of the endowments of the benefice other than parsonage land'; and 'diocesan glebe land' as 'glebe land acquired by a diocesan board of finance under any provision of this Measure and any other land acquired by such a board, being land which by virtue of, or of any enactment amended by, a provision of this Measure is to be held as part of the diocesan glebe land of the diocese.'" David Rees, Ecclesiastical Conveyancing 8 (1989).

global fund See MUTUAL FUND.

globe election The procedure by which a group of employees is given the opportunity to decide whether to be represented as a distinct group or to be represented as a part of a larger, existing unit. Globe Machine & Stamping Co., 3 NLRB 294 (1937). - Also termed self-determination election.

glos (glos), n. [Latin], Roman law. One's husband's sister.

gloss 1. A note inserted between the lines or in the margin of a text to explain a difficult or obscure word in the text <this edition of Shakespeare's works is bolstered by its many glosses on Elizabethan English>. 2. A collection of explanations; a glossary <the hornbook's copious gloss>. 3. (usu. pl.) A pronouncement about meaning; an interpretation <the statutory language needs no gloss>.

glossators (glah-say-tarz). (usu. cap.) A group of Italian jurisconsults who, from the 11th to the 13th centuries, were primarily responsible for the revival of the study of Roman law. They originally worked by glossing (that is, explaining in the margin) difficult or unclear passages, and gradually their writings blossomed into full-blown commentaries and discussions. See POSTGLOSSATORS. glossatorial, adj.

gloucester, statute of (glos-tar). A statute that allowed a successful plaintiff to recover costs in addition to damages. The statute was enacted in Gloucester. 6 Edw. I, ch. 1 (1278).

glove silver Money given as an incentive or reward to a court officer, esp. money given by a sheriff to an assize official when no prisoners were left by the assize for execution. The name derives from the practice of giving money to servants, ostensibly to buy gloves with.

GMI abbr. GUILTY BUT MENTALLY ILL.

GMT abbr. GENETIC-MARKER TEST.

GNMA abbr. GOVERNMENT NATIONAL MORTGAGE ASSOCIATION.

GNP abbr. GROSS NATIONAL PRODUCT.

go bail Archaic. To act as a surety on a bail bond.

go forward To commence or carryon with the presentation of a case in court <after the lunch recess, the judge instructed the plaintiff to go forward with its case>.

go hence without day (Of a defendant to a lawsuit) to be finished with legal proceedings without any further settings on the court's calendar. Thus, a defendant who "goes hence without day" succeeds in getting a case finally resolved, usu. by dismissal. The phrase derives from the Law French phrase aller sans jour, and over time defendants came to use it to request that the case against them be dismissed without the necessity of a day in court. Sometimes shortened to go without day; without day. See SINE DIE.

go to protest (Of commercial paper) to be dishonored by nonpayment or nonacceptance <the draft: will go to protest>. See DISHONOR (1); PROTEST (2).

go to the country See GOING TO THE COUNTRY.

go without day See GO HENCE WITHOUT DAY.

Godbote A church fine paid for offenses against God.

godbote See BOTE (2).

godfather See GODPARENT.

god-gild Money paid or something offered for the service of God; esp., a payment of money or a gift (for example, land) to a church. See FRANKALMOIN.

godparent A person, usu. a close family friend or relative, who accepts a parent's invitation to assume part of the responsibility for the religious education of a newly baptized child. Often, too, there is an understanding that the godparent would help support and rear the child if the parents were to die or become incapacitated. The spiritual parentchild relationship creates a canonical impediment to marriage. - Also termed (more specifically) godmother; godfather; (in eccles. law) sponsor.

godparent See GODPARENT.

god's penny Earnest money; a small sum paid on the striking of a bargain. - Also termed denarius Dei; earnest- See ARRA. "It is among the merchants that the giving of earnest ... becomes a form which binds both buyer and seller in a contract of sale. To all appearances this change was not accomplished without the intermediation of a reli· gious idea. All over western Europe the earnest becomes known as the God's penny or Holy Ghost's penny (denarius Dei) .... " 2 Frederick Pollock &. Frederic W. Maitland, The History of English Law Before the Time of Edward 1208 (2d ed.1899).

going concern A commercial enterprise actively engaging in business with the expectation ofindefinite continuance. - Also termed going business.

going price The prevailing or current market value of something. See fair market value under VALUE (2).

going private The process of changing a public corporation into a close corporation by terminating the corporation's status with the SEC as a publicly held corporation and by having its outstanding publicly held shares acquired by a single shareholder or a small group.

going public The process of a company's selling stock to the investing public for the first time (after filing a registration statement under applicable securities laws), thereby becoming a public corporation.

going through the bar A daily process in which the court would ask all barristers present whether they had motions to present. This practice, which ended in 1873, was conducted according to seniority, except for the last day of a term, when the junior barristers were asked first.

going to the country The act of requesting a jury trial. A defendant was said to be "going to the country" by concluding a pleading with the phrase "and of this he puts himself upon the country." Similarly, a plaintiff would conclude a pleading with the phrase "and this the plaintiff prays may be enquired of by the country." Also termed go to the country. Cf. CONCLt;SION TO THE COUNTRY.

going value See going-concern value under VALUE (2).

going witness See WITNESS.

going-and-coming rule 1. The principle that torts committed by an employee while commuting to or from work are generally outside the scope ofemployment. 2. The principle that denies workers'-compensation benefits to an employee injured while commuting to or from work. ef. COMMERCIAL-TRAVELER RULE.

going-concern value See VALUE (2).

going-private transaction See FREEZE OUT.

gold bond 1. A bond payable in gold coin or U.S. currency at the election of the bondholder . This type of bond existed until 1933, when the U.S. monetary system abandoned the gold standard. 2. A commodity-backed bond that is secured by gold and issued by a gold-mining company.

gold bond- See BOND (3).

gold certificate A banknote issued by the United States Treasury from 1863 to 1934 and redeemable in gold. When'the United States abandoned the gold standard in 1933, Congress declared ownership of gold certificates illegal even though the Treasury continued to issue them until mid-1934. The certificates were legalized again in 1964, but they can no longer be redeemed for gold. They now have the same status as Federal Reserve notes, which are not redeemable for precious metal. Cf. FEDERAL RESERVE NOTE; SILVER CERTIFICATE.

gold clause A provision calling for payment in gold. Gold clauses, which are now void, were once used in contracts, bonds, and mortgages.

gold standard A monetary system in which currency is convertible into its legal equivalent in gold or gold coin. The United States adopted the gold standard in 1900 and abandoned it in 1934. Cf. PAPER STANDARD.

golden handcuffs Remuneration set at such a high level that the employee earning it cannot leave the firm or company and receive commensurate pay elsewhere. As a result, the employee often stays in the position even if it is otherwise unrewarding or unpleasant.

golden handshake Corporations. A generous compensation package offered to an employee, usu. as an inducement to retire or upon dismissal.

golden parachute An employment-contract provision that grants an upper-level executive lucrative severance benefits-including long-term salary guarantees or bonuses - if control of the company changes hands (as by a merger). Cf. TIN PARACHUTE. "Key executives may be provided with significant employment contract clauses that are triggered only by a change in the firm's control through a sale, merger, acquisition, or takeover. These contract clauses are commonly termed golden parachutes. and they generally provide that if control over the employer's business occurs and the new management terminates the executive. additional compensation will be received .... Golden parachutes are useful in providing long·term incentives for executives to enter industries in which takeover chances are above average. Generally, golden parachutes do not violate public policy." Kurt H. Decker & H. Thomas Felix II, Drafting and Revising Employment Contracts § 3.33, at 84 (1991).

golden rule The principle that, in construing written instruments, a court should adhere to the grammatical and ordinary sense of the words unless that adherence would lead to some manifest absurdity; esp., in statutory construction, the principle that ifa statute's literal meaning would lead to an absurd or unjust result, or even to an inconsistency within the statute itself, the statute should be interpreted in a way that avoids such a result or inconsistency. - Also termed Baron Parke's rule. Cf. ABSURDITY; MISCHIEF RULE; PLAIN-MEANING RULE; EQUITY-OF-THE-STATUTE RULE. "[T]he 'golden' rule ... allows for a departure from the literal rule when the application of the statutory words in the ordinary sense would be repugnant to or inconsistent with some other provision in the statute or even when it would lead to what the court considers to be an absurdity. The usual consequence of applying the golden rule is that words which are in the statute are ignored or words which are not there are read in. The scope of the golden rule is debatable, particularly so far as the meaning of an 'absurdity' is concerned." Rupert Cross, Statutory Interpretation 14 (1976).

golden-rule argument A jury argument in which a lawyer asks the jurors to reach a verdict by imagining themselves or someone they care about in the place of the injured plaintiff or crime victim. Because goldenrule arguments ask the jurors to become advocates for the plaintiff or victim and to ignore their obligation to exercise calm and reasonable judgment, these arguments are Widely condemned and are considered improper in most states.

goldsmiths' notes Bankers' cash notes; promissory notes given by bankers to customers as acknowledgments of the receipt of money. This term derives from the London banking business, which originally was transacted by goldsmiths.

good adj. (bef. 12c) 1. Sound or reliable <a good investment>. 2. Valid, effectual, and enforceable; sufficient under the law <good title>.

good- See GOODS.

good samaritan action See GOOD SAMARITAN ACTION.

good and lawful fence See LAWFUL FENCE.

good and merchantable abstract of title An abstract of title showing clear, good, and marketable title, rather than showing only the history of the property. See clear title, good title, and marketable title under TITLE (2).

good and merchantable abstract of title- See ABSTRACT OF TITLE.

good and valuable consideration See valuable consideration.

good and valuable consideration- See valuable consideration under CONSIDERATION (1).

good and workmanlike (Of a product or service) characterized by quality craftsmanship; constructed or performed in a skillful way or method <the house was built in a good and workmanlike manner>.

good behavior 1. A standard by which judges are considered fit to continue their tenure, consisting in the avoicance of criminal behavior. 2. Orderly conduct, which in the context of penal law allows a prisoner to reduce the time spent in prison. Cf. good time under TIME.

good cause A legally sufficient reason .o Good cause is often the burden placed on a litigant (usu. by court rule or order) to show why a request should be granted or an action excused. '{he term is often used in employment-termination cases. Also termed good cause shown; just cause; lawful cause; sufficient cause."Issues of 'just cause,' or 'good cause,' or simply 'cause' arise when an employee claims breach of the terms of an employment contract providing that discharge will be only for just cause. Thus, just cause is a creature of contract. By operation of law, an employment contract for a definite term may not be terminated without cause before the expiration of the term, unless the contract provides otherwise." Mark A. Rothstein et aI., Employment Law § 9.7, at 539 (1994).

good cause- See CAUSE (2).

good cause shown See good cause under CAUSE (2).