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habitual residence 1. Family law. A person s customary place of residence; esp., a child s customary place of residence before being removed to some other place. The term, which appears as an undefined term in the Hague Convention, is used in determining the country having a presumed paramount interest in the child. 2. Copyright. An established place, esp. a country, in which one lives for the long term, usu. without being a citizen of the place. The Berne Convention makes habitual residence an alternative to legal domicile in a member country to qualify for copyright protection but leaves the exact definition of the term to member countries.

habitual residence See RESIDENCE.

hable (ab-al), n. [Law French]. A port or harbor; a station for ships.

hacienda particular (ah-syen-dah [or hah-see-en-da] pahr-tee-koo-Iahr), n. Spanish law. Private property.

hacienda publica (ah-syen-dah [or hah-see-en-da] poo-blee-kah), n. Spanish law. 1. Public revenue or assets. 2. The public treasury; economic ministry.

hacienda social (ah-syen-dah [or hah-see-en-da] sohsyahl), n. Spanish law. Property belonging to a corporation or partnership.

hack To surreptitiously break into the computer, network, servers, or database of another person or organization. Cf. CRACK. hacker, n.

had Commenced or begun, as used in a statute providing that no legal proceeding may be had (usu. followed by the words or maintained) <no action for foreclosure may be had or maintained until the debtor has been given at least 30 days' notice>.

hadbote Amends for an affront to or violence against a person in holy orders. Also spelled had bot.

hadbote- See BOTE (2).

hadgonel (had-ga-nel), A tax or mulct.

hadley v. baxendale rule The principle that consequential damages will be awarded for breach of contract only if it was foreseeable at the time of contracting that this type of damage would result from the breach. Hadley v. Baxendale, 9 Exch. 341 (1854). Hadley v. Baxendale is best known for its impact on a nonbreaching party's ability to recover consequential damages, but the case also confirmed the principle that the nonbreaching party may recover damages that arise naturally from the breach. See foreseeable damages under DAMAGES. "The rationale of the decision appears in Baron Alderson's noted statement of what came to be known as the two rules of Hadley v. Baxendale. The first rule was that the injured party may recover damages for loss that 'may fairly and reasonably be considered [as] arising naturally, i.e., according to the usual course of things, from such breach of contract itself.' ... The second and more significant rule went to recovery of damages for loss other than that 'arising naturally' to recovery of what have come to be known as 'consequential' damages .... By introducing this requirement of 'contemplation' for the recovery of consequential damages, the court imposed an important new limitation on the scope of recovery that juries could allow for breach of contract. The result was to impose a more severe limitation on the recovery of damages for breach of contract than that applicable to actions in tort or for breach of warranty, in which substantial or proximate cause is the test." E. Allan Farnsworth, Contracts § 12.14, at 822-23 (3d ed. 1999).

had-not test See BUT-FOR TEST.

haec est conventio (heek est kan-ven-shee-oh). [Law Latin]. This is the agreement. These formal words commonly prefaced written agreements.

haec estfinalis concordia (heek est fi-nay-lis kan-kor-dee-a). [Law Latin]. This is the final agreement. These were the words that began a fine, a fictitious judicial proceeding formerly in use as a mode of conveying land. See FOOT OF THE FINE; FINE.

haec verba See IN HAEC VERBA.

haeredibus et assignatis quibuscunque (ha-red-i-bas et as-ig-nay-tis kwib-as-kang-kwee). [Law Latin], Scots law, To heirs and assignees whomsoever. This was a simple destination phrase.

haereditas See HEREDITAS.

haeres See HERES.

haeretico comburendo See DE HAERETICO COMBURENDa.

hafne (hay-van), n. [Old English], A haven or port.

hafne court Haven courts; one of several courts anciently held in certain ports in England.

hague academy of international law (hayg). A center for advanced studies in international law, both public and private, aimed at facilitating the comprehensive and impartial examination of problems of international legal relations. It was founded in the Netherlands in 1923 on the initiative of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and the Institut de Droit International. - Also termed Academie de Droit International de La Haye.

hague convention The short name for anyone of the many numerous international conventions that address different legal issues and attempt to standardize procedures between nations.

hague convention on protection of children and cooperation in respect of intercountry adoption A 1993 international agreement to establish uniform procedures governing intercountry adoptions. The Convention has not been widely adopted. The U.S. has signed but not ratified it.

hague convention on the civil aspects of international child abduction An international convention (concluded in 1980) that seeks to counteract crossborder child-snatching by noncustodial parents. This convention created a legal mechanism available to parents seeking the return of, or access to, their children. Its purposes are to secure the prompt return of children who have been wrongfully taken from one country to another and to enforce custody and visitation rights in the contracting countries. The procedure is summary in nature and does not contemplate continuing hearings on the merits of a dispute. More than 80 countries are parties to the Convention, including the United States. 42 USCA §§ 11601-11610.

hague convention on the service abroad of judicial and extrajudicial documents An international convention, concluded on November 15, 1965, governing procedures for effecting service of process in a foreign country.o More than 35 countries are parties to the Convention, including the United States.

hague convention on the taking of evidence abroad in civil or commercial matters An international convention, concluded on October 26, 1968, that establishes procedures for obtaining evidence in a foreign country, such as taking a deposition abroad. More than 27 countries are parties, including the United States.

hague rules An international agreement adopted at the International Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules of Law Relating to Bills of Lading in 1924. Under the Hague Rules, a carrier is not liable for losses.

hague tribunal A permanent court of arbitration established by the Hague Peace Conference of 1899 to facilitate immediate recourse to arbitration to settle international differences. The court was given jurisdiction over all arbitration cases, unless the parties agreed to institute a special tribunal. An international bureau was likewise established to serve as a registry for the court and to issue communications about the court's meetings. The court is "permanent" only in the sense that there is a permanent list of members from whom arbitrators in a given case are selected. Apart from making minor changes in the court, the Second Hague Conference of 1907 provided that, of the two arbitrators appointed by each party, only one should be a national of the appointing state.

haircut 1. Securities. The discount required by the National Association of Securities Dealers on the value of stock that a brokerage firm holds in its own account at the time of filing a monthly report about the firm's net capital condition. 2. The difference between the amount of a loan and the market value of the collateral securing the loan.

haircut reorganization See REORGANIZATION (1).

haircut reorganization A restructuring that reduces the principal amount of indebtedness owed to creditors. The more common usage is simply haircut <we took a haircut on that deal>. 2. Tax. A restructuring of a corporation, as by a merger or recapitalization, in order to improve its tax treatment under the Internal Revenue Code. The Code classifies the various types of reorganizations with different letters. IRC (26 USCA) § 368(a)(I). Cf. RECAPITALIZATION.

haitian divorce See Mexican divorce.

haitian divorce- See Mexican divorce under DIVORCE.

hale To compel (a person) to go, esp. to court <hale a party into court>.

half (bef. 12c), One of two equal parts into which a thing can be divided; MOIETY.

half blood The relationship existing between persons having the same father or mother, but not both parents in common. Sometimes written half-blood. See relative of the half blood under RELATIVE.

half blood- See BLOOD.

half brother A brother who has the same father or the same mother, but not both.

half brother- See BROTHER.

half nephew See NEPHEW (1).

half niece See NIECE.

half orphan See ORPHAN (2).

half plus one Parliamentary law. A common but inexact (and often inaccurate) approximation for a majority. For a body with 100 members, a majority is indeed half plus one, or 51. But for a body with an odd number of members, "half plus one" would not be a whole number. So "a simple majority" is a better choice for designating majority rule. - Also termed 50 percent plus one. See MAfORITY (2).

half section See SECTION.

half section A piece of land containing 320 acres, laid off either by a north-and-south or by an east -and-west line; half a section of land.

half sister A sister who has the same father or the same mother, but not both.

half sister See SISTER.

halfendeal (hahv-an-deel), n. [fr. Law Latin halfendele]. Half a thing; a moiety. - Also spelled halfendeal; halfendeal.

half-mark See DEMIMARK.

half-pilotage See PILOTAGE.

half-pilotage Compensation equaling half the value of services that a pilot has offered to perform. Shipowners can avoid compulsory pilotage in some juris¬dictions by payment of half-pilotage.

half-proof 1. Proof established by one witness, or by a private instrument. See UNUS NULLUS RULE. 2. Prima facie proof that is nonetheless insufficient to support a sentence or decree.

half-seal A seal used in the Court of Chancery to mark commissions to the Court of Delegates on the appeal of an ecclesiastical or maritime case. The use of the seal ended when the Court of Delegates was abolished in 1832. See COURT OF DELEGATES.

half-timer In England, a child excused from full-time attendance at school under the Factory and Workshop Act of 1908 so that the child could work part-time in a factory or workshop. The Factory and Workshop Acts from 1901 to 1911 were repealed by the Factory and Workshop (Cotton Cloth Factories) Act of 1929 and the Factories Act of 1937.

half-tongue In England, a jury empaneled to try an alien, and composed half ofone nationality and half of another. The use of this type of jury ended in 1914 with the passage of the Status of Aliens Act.

halfway house A transitional housing facility designed to rehabilitate people who have recently left a prison or medical-care facility, or who otherwise need help in adjusting to a normal life. Also termed residential community treatment center.

half-year See YEAR.

halifax law 1. LYNCH LAW; more broadly, an irrevocable punishment carried out after a summary trial. 2. The summary and unauthorized trial and execution (usu. by decapitation) of a person accused of a crime. This term comes from the parish of Halifax, in England, where - according to custom in the forest of Hardwick - this form of private justice was anciently practiced by the free burghers against people accused of stealing. Thieves could be condemned to death by beheading on market day. The last such case is said to have occurred in 1650. - Also termed gibbet law; Halifax inquest.

haligemot See HALLMOTE.

hall (bef. 12c) 1. A building or room of considerable size, used for meetings of bodies such as public assemblies, conventions, and courts. 2. Parliamentary law. The room or other space in which a deliberative assembly meets. 3. A manor house or chief mansion house. It was called a hall because the magistrate's court was typically held there.

hallage (hawl-ij), A fee or toll due for goods or merchandise sold in a hall used as a market; a toll payable to the lord ofa fair or market for commodities sold in the common hall.

hallazgo (ah-yahz-goh), n. [Spanish] Spanish law. 1. The finding and taking possession of ownerless property. 2. The first occupant recognized by law.

halle-gemot (hawl-ga-moht), n. See HALLMOTE.

halligan tool See HOOLIGAN TOOL.

hallmark 1. An official stamp affixed by goldsmiths and silversmiths on articles made of gold or silver to show genuineness. 2. A mark of genuineness.

hallmoot See HALLMOTE.

hallmote (hahl-moht), n. (bef. 12c) 1. A court baron; specif., an annual court, presided over by the lord of the manor, to decide civil disputes between feudal tenants. The court was usu. held in the manor's great hall. See COURT BARON. 2. A trade-guild's commercial court, in which guild members were tried for trade-related offenses against the guild. 3. A convention of citizens in their public hall. - Also termed folkmote. 4. (Erroneously) an ecclesiastical court. o Although this definition appears in many secular legal diction aries, it is unheard of in canon law. In sense 4, it is often (erroneously) spelled holymote. Also spelled (in senses 1-3) hallmoot; halmote; halymote; halle-gemot; haligemote.

halmote See HALLMOTE.

halymote (hal-a-moht). See HALLMOTE.

ham (ham or am). (bef. 12c), 1. A place of dwelling; a village. This word now usu. appears in compound form at the end of place names, such as Buckingham. 2. A small (esp. enclosed) pasture; a piece ofland. - Also spelled hamm. Cf. HAMLET.

hamel See HAMLET.

hameleta See HAMLET.

hamesucken (haym-sak- an), n. (bef. 12c), Scots law. 1. Assault on a householder within the house after breaking in to commit the assault or to commit theft. 2. The crime of housebreaking or burglary accompanied by violence. This term derives from Anglo-Saxon law (ham soen), and literally meant" breaching the peace of another's home." Also spelled hamesecken; hamesoken. Also termed hamfare. "Burglary, or nocturnal housebreaking, burgi latrocinium, which by our ancient law was called hamesecken, as it is in Scotland to this day, has always been looked upon as a very heinous offence ...." 4 William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England 223 (1769).

hamfare See HAMESGCKEN.

hamlet A small village; a part or member of a vill. A hamlet in a rural community might consist of no more than a store, a church, and a few residences. Also termed hamel; harneleta; hamleta. See VILL. Cf. HAM.

hamleta See HAMLET.

hammer A forced a sale at public auction <her jewelry was brought to the hammer>. See forced sale under SALE.

hammurabi, code of See CODE OF HAMMURABI.

hanaper (han-a-par), n. [Law Latin hanaperium "hamper"], 1. A basket or hamper used by the Chancery to store writs and returns. 2. The treasury of the Chancery, funded from the fees charged for writs. Cf. FISCUS.

hanaper office An office formerly belonging to the common-law jurisdiction of the Chancery Court. The term derives from the storage of writs in a hamper (in hanaperio). Crown writs, on the other hand, were stored in the Petty Bag Office. The Hanaper Office was abolished in 1842. See BAGA.

hand 1. A person's handwriting <a holographic will must be in the testator's hand>. 2. An instrumental part <he had a hand in the crime>. 3. One who performs some work or labor <Hickory was one of the Gales' hired hands>. 4. (usu. pl.) Possession <the cocaine was now in the hands of the police>. 5. Assistance <the carpenter lent a hand to the project>. 6. A measure of length equal to four inches, used in measuring the height of equines, esp. horses <the pony stood ten hands tall>. 7. An oath <he gave his hand on the matter>. 8. One of two sides or aspects ofan issue or argument <on the one hand we can argue for imprisonment, on the other for leniency>.

hand- To give; to deliver <he handed over the documents>.

hand down To announce or file (a judgment) in a case. The term was originally used in connection with an appellate-court opinion sent to the court below; it was later expanded to include any decision by a court on a case or point under consideration.

hand formula A balancing test for determining whether conduct has created an unreasonable risk of harm, first formulated by Judge Learned Hand in United States v. Carroll Towing Co., 159 F.2d 169 (2d Cif. 1947). Under this test, an actor is negligent if the burden of taking adequate precautions against the harm is outweighed by the probable gravity of the harm multiplied by the probability that the harm will occur. ''The legal standard applicable to most unintentional tort cases is that of negligence, defined by Judge Learned Hand as follows: the defendant is guilty of negligence if the loss caused by the accident, multiplied by the probability of the accident's occurring, exceeds the burden of the tions that the defendant might have taken to avert This is an economic test.... Although the Hand formula is of relatively recent origin, the method that it capsulizes has been the basic one used to determine negligence ever since negligence was first adopted as the standard to govern accident cases." Richard A. Posner, Economic Analysis of Law § 6.2, at 122-23 (2d ed. 1977).

hand money Money paid in hand to bind a bargain; earnest money paid in cash. See EARNEST MONEY.

hand note See NOTE (1).

hand up vb. (Of a grand jury) to deliver (an indictment) to a criminal court.

handbill A written or printed notice displayed, handed out, or posted, usu. to inform interested people of an event or of something to be done. Posting and distribution of handbills is regulated by ordinance or statute in most localities.

handfast marriage See MARRIAGE (1).

handfasting 1. See handfast marriage (3) under MARRIAGE (1). 2. See hand fast marriage (4) under MARRIAGE (1).

handhabend (hand-hab-and), adj. (Of a thief) caught in possession of a stolen item.

handhabend- [fr. Old English aet haebbendre handa "at or with a having hand"]. 1. The bearing ofstolen goods in hand or about the person. Cf. BACKBEREND. 2. A thief or another person caught carrying stolen goods. 3. Jurisdiction to try a person caught carrying stolen goods. - Also spelled hand-habende.

handicap See DISABILITY (2).

handicapped child A child who is mentally retarded, deaf or hearing-impaired, speech-impaired, blind or visually disabled, seriously emotionally disturbed, or orthopedically impaired, or who because of specific learning disabilities requires special education.

handicapped child- See CHILD.

handsale A sale memorialized by shaking hands. Over time, handsale also came to refer to the earnest money given immediately after the handshake. In some northern European countries, shaking hands was necessary to bind a bargain. This custom sometimes persists for oral contracts. The Latin phrase for handsale was venditio per mutuam manuum complexionem ("a sale by the mutual joining of hands"). - Also spelled handsel.

hands-off agreement A noncompete contractual provision between an employer and a former employee prohibiting the employee from using information learned during his or her employment to divert or to steal customers from the former employer.

handwriting 1. A person's chirography; the cast or form of writing peculiar to a person, includthe size, shape, and style of letters, and whatever individuality to one's writing. 2. Something written by hand; a writing specimen. Nonexpert opinion about the genuineness of handwriting, based on familiarity not acquired for litigation purposes, can authenticate a document. Fed. R. Evid. 901(b)(2).