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gratuitous consideration (gra-t[y]oo-i-tas). Consideration that, not being founded on any detriment to the party who gives it, will not support a contract; a performance for which a party was already obligated.

gratuitous consideration- See CONSIDERATION (1).

gratuitous contract (gra-t[y]oo-i-tas). 1. A contract made for the benefit of a promisee who does not give consideration to the promisor. Also termed contract of beneficence; contract of benevolence. Cf. onerous contract. 2. Civil law. A contract in which one party promises to give a benefit to the other party without expecting or gaining any benefit in return. Also termed voluntary contract.

gratuitous coutract See CONTRACT.

gratuitous deed See deed of gift.

gratuitous deed- See deed ofgift under DEED.

gratuitous deposit See gratuitous bailment under BAILMENT. 2. See DEPOSIT (5).

gratuitous gift A gift made without consideration, as most gifts are. Strictly speaking, the term looks redundant, but it answers to the donum gratuitum of Roman law.

gratuitous gift- See GIFT.

gratuitous promise A promise made in exchange for nothing; a promise not supported by consideration. A gratuitous promise is not ordinarily legally enforceable. Also termed bare promise; naked promise.

gratuitous promise See PROMISE.

gratuitous surety See SURETY.

gratuitous surety A surety who is not compensated for becoming obliged to the creditor. Perhaps the most common example is the parent who signs as a surety for a child.

gratuitous trust See donative trust under TRUST.

gratuity See BOUNTY.

gravamen (gra-vay-man). The substantial point Or essence of a claim, grievance, or complaint.

gravatio (gra-vay-shee-oh). [Law Latin]. An accusation or impeachment.

graveyard insurance See wager policy.

graveyard insurance See wager policy under INSURAJS'CE POLICY.

gravity Seriousness of harm, an offense, etc., as judged from an objective, legal standpoint.

gray market See MARKET.

gray mule case See WHITEHORSE CASE.

graymail A criminal defendant's threat to reveal classified information during the trial in the hope of forcing the government to drop the criminal charge. Cf. BLACKMAIL (1); GREENMAIL (1), (2); FEEMAIL.

gray-market adoption See private adoption.

gray-market adoption- See private adoption under ADOPTION.

gray-market goods See PARALLEL IMPORTS.

gray-market goods- See PARALLEL IMPORTS.

greaser law An anti-vagrancy statute that gave law-enforcement authorities broad discretion to arrest, fine, and jail people of Hispanic appearance who had no visible means of support. This statute was enacted in California in 1855 and repealed in the mid-20th century. The term greaser is racially derogatory, - Also termed Greaser Act.

great bodily injury See serious bodily injury under INJURY.

great bodily injury See serious bodily injury.

great care 1. The degree of care that a prudent person eXercises in dealing with very important personal affairs. 2. The degree of care exercised in a given situation by someone in the business or profession of dealing with the situation. Also termed extraordinary care; high degree ofcare; utmost care.

great care- See CARE.

great diligence The diligence that a very prudent person exercises in handling his or her own property like that at issue. Also termed high diligence.

great diligence- See DILIGENCE.

great fee In feudal law, a fee received directly from the Crown.

great fee- See FEE (2).

great Inquest See grand inquest (2) under INQlJEST.

great Lakes rule The statutory provision that an admiralty litigant is entitled to a jury trial in a contract or tort action if the lawsuit arises from the operation ofa commercial vessel on the Great Lakes or the naVigable waters connecting them. See 28 USCA § 1873. "The most important distinction between the law and admi· ralty 'sides' of federal court is that trial by jury is guaranteed for law claims through the Seventh Amendment, but where the case is maintained as an admiralty claim the litigant has neither constitutional nor statutory right to a jury trial. The one exception is the 'Creat Lakes Rule' ...." Frank L Maraist & Thomas C. Calligan Jr., Admiralty in a Nutshell 358 (4th ed. 2001).

great law The. Hist. The first code of laws enacted in Pennsylvania. The Great Law was passed in 1682 by an assembly that had been called by William Penn.

great pond A body of water larger than ten acres, and thus subject to public ownership. This term applies in Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts. - Also termed public pond.

great rolls of the exchequer See PIPE ROLLS.

great seal 1. The official seal of the United States, of which the Secretary of State is the custodian. - Also termed seal ofthe United States. 2. The official seal of a particular state. Also termed seal ofthe state; state seal. 3. The official seal of Great Britain, of which the Lord Chancellor is the custodian.

great seal See SEAL.

great survey See grand inquest (2) under INQUEST.

great tithe See TITHE.

great waters program A scheme created by Congress in 1990 to make the Environmental Protection Agency more directly responsible for protecting large bodies of fresh water and coastal waters from environmental harm caused by air pollution. Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990,42 USCA § 7412(m).

great writ See HABEAS CORPUS.

gree (gree), n. [Law French]. A satisfaction received by a party for an offense or injury against the party. See SATISFACTION (1). "Cree comes of the French word gree, good liking: and it signifies in our law, contentment or satisfaction; as in the statute of 1 R. 2, c. 15, to make gree to the parties is to give them contentment or satisfaction for an offence done unto them." Termes de Ja Ley 247 (1 st Am. ed. 1812).

green card A registration card evidencing a resident alien's status as a permanent U.S. resident.

green cloth See BOARD OF GREEN CLOTH.

green goods Counterfeit money.

green paper on copyright and the challenge of technology A 1988 European Commission publication that laid out a plan to harmonize the copyright laws of member nations, esp.laws relating to information technology. The Green Paper was tollowed by a series of directives that mandated uniform policies regarding copyright and new technologies. - Usu. shortened to Green Paper.

green river ordinance A local licensing law that protects residents from unwanted peddlers and salespersons, typically by prohibiting door-to-door solicitations without prior consent. The ordinance takes its name from Green River, Wyoming, which enacted the first such law in the early 20th century before others came into vogue during the 19308 and 19405 throughout the United States.

green wax (pl.) An Exchequer order (an estreat) directing a sheriff to collect the fines and amercements listed in the order. The name derives from the color of the wax the Exchequer used on the estreat to certify its authenticity. See ESTREAT.

greenback (ca. 1862) Slang. A legal-tender note of the United States; any note issued by a federal reserve bank. The term was coined in 1862 when the backs of American paper currency were first printed in green ink.

green-card marriage See MARRIAGE (1).

greenfield site 1. Land that has never been developed. Such land is presumably uncontaminated. Cf. BROWNFIELD SITE. 2. Property acquired as an investment, esp. for establishing a new business.

greenmail 1. The act or practice of buying enough stock in a company to threaten a hostile takeover and then selling the stock back to the corporation at an inflated price. 2. The money paid for stock in the corporation's buyback. Cf. BLACKMAIL (1); FEEMAIL; GRAYMAIL. 3. A shareholder's act of filing or threatening to file a derivative action and then seeking a disproportionate settlement.

greffier (gref-ee-ar or gref-yay), n. [Law French]. A registrar, esp. of a court; the court recordkeeper.

Gregorian calendar See NEW STYLE.

gregorian calendar See NEW STYLE.

gregorian code See CODEX GREGORIANUS.

gremio juris, in See IN GREMIO JURIS.

gremio legis, in See IN GREMIO LEGIS.

grenville act A statute that transferred jurisdiction over parliamentary election petitions from the whole House of Commons to select committees. The Act, sponsored by George Grenville, was passed in 1770. It was designed to depoliticize the resolution of disputed elections, and repealed in 1828 when it was superseded by statutes that conferred jurisdiction over election disputes on the courts.

gresham's law The principle a debased currency will drive out valuable currency. This economic principle is popularly attributed to sir Thomas Gresham (1519-] 579), even though earlier writers such as Oresme and Copernicus discussed it.

gressume (gres-am). A fine paid by a copyhold tenant upon the transfer of a copyhold estate, esp. upon the death ofthe lord. Also spelledgrasson;grassum; grossome; gersum.

gretna-green marriage See MARRIAGE (1).

greve See REEVE.

grievance 1. An injury, injustice, or wrong that gives ground for a complaint <a petition for a redress of grievances>. 2. The complaint itself <the client filed a grievance with the state-bar committee>. 3. Labor law. A complaint that is filed by an employee or the employee's union representative an d that usu. concerns working conditions, esp. an alleged violation of a collective-bargaining agreement. See grievance arbitration under ARBITRATION; GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE.

grievance arbitration 1. Arbitration that involves the violation or interpretation of an existing contract. The arbitrator issues a final decision regarding the meaning of the contractual terms. 2. Labor law. Arbitration of an employee's grievance, usu. relating to an alleged violation of the employee's rights under a collective-bargaining agreement. The arbitration procedure is set out in the collective-bargaining agreement. Grievance arbitration is the final step in grievance procedure. - Also termed rights arbitration. See GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE. "The great majority of today's collective bargaining agree· ments provide for an impartial arbitrator to hear and decide grievances under the bargaining agreement. The details of grievance arbitration vary considerably among agreements." Douglas L. leslie, Labor Law in a Nutshell 264 (3d ed. 1 992).

grievance arbitration- See ARBITRATION.

grievance procedure A process, consisting of several steps, for the resolution of an employee's complaint. The first step usu. occurs at the shop level and is handled by a supervisor. If the grievance is not resolved at the first step, the grievance is appealed in successive steps that vary among collective-bargaining agreements. The final step of the procedure is grievance arbitration. See grievance arbitration under ARBITRATION; GRIEVANCE (3).

grievant Labor law. An employee who files a grievance and submits it to the grievance procedure outlined in a collective-bargaining agreement.

grieve To contest under a grievance procedure <the union urged the employee to grieve the suspension>. grievable, adj.

grievous bodily harm See serious bodily injury under INJURY.

grievous bodily harm- See serious bodily injury under INJURY.

grift To obtain money or other property illicitly by adroit use of a scam, confidence game. or other fraudulent means. - grifter, n.

GRIT abbr. GRANTOR-RETAINED INCOME TRUST.

GRM abbr. GROSS-RENT MULTIPLIER.

grog-shop See DRAM SHOP.

groin-grabbing The act of fondling or touching a person's genitals through the person's clothing, esp. in a crowded space or while walking along a sidewalk in the opposite direction from the person. - Also termed groin-groping.

gross adventure A loan on bottomry, so called because the lender will be liable for the gross (or general) average. See BOTTOMRY.

gross adventure- See ADVENTGRE.

gross average See general average under AVERAGE.

gross charter A charter under which the shipowner provides all personnel and pays all expenses.

gross charter- See CHARTER (8).

gross damages The total damages found before adjustments and offsets.

gross damages- See DAMAGES.

gross earnings See gross income under INCOME.

gross earnings- See gross income under INCOME.

gross estate 1. The total value of a decedent's property without any deductions. 2. Loosely, adjusted gross estate.

gross estate- See ESTATE (3).

gross income See INCOME.

gross interest A borrowers interest payment that includes administrative, service, and insurance charges.

gross interest See INTEREST (3).

gross lease See LEASE.

gross misdemeanor See MISDEMEANOR.

gross national product The market value of all goods and services produced in a country within a year. used to measure a country's economic development and wealth. - Abbr. GNP.

gross neglect of duty See DESERTION.