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inevitability doctrine See INEVITABLE-DISCLOSURE DOCTRINE.

inevitable accident See unavoidable accident under ACCIDENT.

inevitable-accident doctrine See UNAVOIDABLE-ACCIDENT DOCTRINE.

inevitable-disclosure doctrine The legal theory that a key employee, once hired by a competitor, cannot avoid misappropriating the former employer's trade secrets. To justify an injunction, the plaintiff must prove that the former employee has confidential information and will not be able to avoid using that knowledge to unfairly compete against the plaintiff. Most courts have rejected this controversial doctrine on grounds that it effectively turns a nondisclosure agreement into a disfavored noncompetition agreement. The leading case upholding the doctrine is Pepsico, Inc. v. Redmond, 54 F,3d 1262 (7th Cir. 1995), where the court quipped: "Pepsico finds itselfin the position of a coach, one of whose players has left, playbook in hand, to join the opposing team before the big game." Also termed inevitable disclosure rule; inevitability doctrine; inevitable misappropriation doctrine.

inevitable-discovery rule Criminal procedure. The rule providing as an exception to the fruit -of-thepoisonous-tree doctrine - that evidence obtained by illegal means may nonetheless be admissible if the prosecution can show that the evidence would eventually have been legally obtained anyway. See FRUIT-OF-THEPOISONOUS-TREE DOCTRINE. Cf. INDEPENDENT-SOURCE RULE.

inevitable-misappropriation doctrine See INEVITABLEDISCLOSURE DOCTRINE.

inexcusable neglect See NEGLECT.

infamia (in-fay-mee-a), n. [Latin] Roman law. 1. Bad reputation; ill-fame. 2. Loss of honor as a citizen.

infamia facti (in-fay-mee-a fak-ti). Infamy in fact, though not yet judicially proved.

infamia juris (in-fay-mee-a joor-is). Infamy established by judicial verdict.

infamis (in-fay-mis), adj. [Latin] Roman law. (Of a person or action) of ill-repute. A person was automatically infamis if held liable for certain torts or breaches of fiduciary duty. This type of condemnation carried with it certain disabilities, such as disqualification from office or ineligibility to witness a formal transaction.

infamous (in-fa-mas), adj. 1. (Of a person) having a bad reputation. 2. (Of a person) deprived of some or all rights of citizenship after conviction for a serious crime. Historically, a person convicted ofalmost any crime became infamous. 3. (Of conduct) that is punishable by imprisonment.

infamous crime (in-fa-mas). 1. At common law, a crime for which part of the punishment was infamy, so that one who committed it would be declared ineligible to serve on a jury, hold public office, or testify. Examples are perjury, treason, and fraud. 2. A crime punishable by imprisonment in a penitentiary. The Fifth Amendment requires a grandjury indictment for the prosecution of infamous (or capital) crimes, which include all federal felony offenses. See indictable offense under OFFENSE (1). cr. noninfamous crime. "At common law an infamous crime was one ... inconsis· tent with the common principles of honesty and humanity. Infamous crimes were treason, felony, all offenses found in fraud and which came within the general notion of the crimen falSi of the Civil law, piracy, swindling, cheating, barratry, and the bribing of a witness to absent himself from a trial, in order to get rid of his evidence." Justin Miller, Handbook ofCriminai Law § 8, at 25 (1934).

infamous crime- See CRIME.

infamous punishment See PUNISHMENT.

infamous punishment Punishment by imprisonment, usu. in a penitentiary. See infamous crime under CRIME.

infamy (in-fa-mee), 1. Disgraceful repute. 2. The loss of reputation or position resulting from a person's being convicted of an infamous crime. See infamous crime under CRIME.

infancy 1. MINORITY (1). 2. Early childhood.

infangthief (in-fang-theef). [fr. Old English in "in" + fangen "taken" + theof"thief"]. A privilege held by a lord of a manor to try, and deal summarily with, a thief captured on the lord's land, esp. a thief captured with plunder. Also spelled infangthef Cf. OUTFANGTHIEF.

infans (in-fanz), n. [Latin) Roman law. A child under seven years old. On turning seven years old, an infans became known as an impubes. An infans had no capacity in the law. Cf. IMPUBES.

infant 1. A newborn baby. 2. MINOR (1). "An infant in the eyes of the law is a person under the age of twenty·one years, and at that period (which is the same in the French and generally in the American law) he or she is said to attain majority; and for his torts and crimes an infant may be liable; but for his contracts, as a general rule, he is not liable, unless the contract is for necessaries." John Indermaur, Principles ofthe Common Law 195 (Edmund H. Bennett ed., 1st Am. ed. 1878). "[I]nfant the one technical word that we have as a contrast for the person of full age stands equally well for the new-born babe and the youth who is in his twenty-first year." 2 Frederick Pollock & Frederic William Maitland, History of English Law Before the Time of Edward 1439 (2d ed.1899). "The common-law rule provided that a person was an infant until he reached the age of twenty· one. The rule continues at the present time, though by statute in somejurisdictions the age may be lower." John Edward Murray Jr.. Murray on Contracts § 12, at 18 (2d ed. 1974).

infantia (in-fan-shee-a), n. [Latin] Roman law. The period of a person's life from birth to seven years; early childhood.

infantiae proximus (in-fan-shee-ee prok-si-mas). [Latin] Roman law. Next to infancy. A child was infantiae proximus when slightly over seven years of age.

infanticide (in-fant-a-sid). 1. The act of killing a newborn child, esp. by the parents or with their consent. In archaic usage, the word referred also to the killing of an unborn child. Also termed child destruction; neonaticide. Cf. FETICIDE; FILIClDE (2). 2. The practice of killing newborn children. 3. One who kills a newborn child. Also termed child-slaying. Cf. PROLICIDE. infanticidal, ad}.

infavorem libertatis (in fa-vor-am lib-ar-tay-tis). [Law Latin], In favor of liberty.

infect 1. To contaminate <the virus infected the entire network>. 2. To taint with crime <one part of the city has long been infected with illegal drug-dealing>. 3. To make (a ship or cargo) liable in the seizure of contraband, which is only a part ofits cargo <claiming that the Single package of marijuana had infected the ship, the Coast Guard seized the entire vessel>. - infection, n. infections, adj.

infection, doctrine of The principle that any goods belonging to an owner of contraband and carried on the same ship as the contraband may be seized or otherwise treated in the same manner as the contraband itself.

infeft p.pl. Scots law. Enfeoffed. See ENFEOFF.

infeftment Scots law. ENFEOFFMENT (1).

infeotf See ENFEOFF.

infeotfment See ENFEOFFMENT.

infer To conclude from facts or from factual reasoning; to draw as a conclusion or inference. Cf. IMPLY (1).

inference (in-far-ants), 1. A conclusion reached by considering other facts and deducing a logical con sequence from them.

inference-on-inference rule The principle that a presumption based on another presumption cannot serve as a basis for determining an ultimate fact.

inference-stacking The practice or an instance of piling one or more inferences on each other to arrive at a legal conclusion. - Also termed pyramiding inferences. See INFERENCE-ON-INFERENCE RULE.

inferential fact A fact established by conclusions drawn from other evidence rather than from direct testimony or evidence; a fact derived logically from other facts.

inferential fact- See FACT.

inferential pleading See argumentative pleading under PLEADING (1).

inferential pleading See argumentative pleading.

inferior court 1. Any court that is subordinate to the chief appellate tribunal within a judicial system. 2. A court of special, limited, or statutory jurisdiction, whose record must show the existence of jurisdiction in any given case to give its ruling presumptive validity. - Also termed lower court.

inferior court- See COURT.

inferior judge A judge who sits on a lower court.

inferior judge- See JUDGE.

inferior officer 1. An officer who is subordinate to another officer. 2. A United States officer appOinted by the President, by a court, or by the head of a federal department. Senate confirmation is not required. See United States officer.

inferior officer See OFFICER (1).

inferred authority See incidental authority under AUTHORITY (1).

infertile Unable to conceive or bear offspring; sterile. - infertility, n.

infeudate See ENFEOFF.

infeudate- See ENFEOFF.

infeudation (in-fyoo-day-shan), n. Under the feudal system oflandholding, the process of giving a person legal possession of land; ENFEOFFMENT (1). Cf. SUBINFEUDATION. - infeudate, vb. "So thorough was the process by which the land of England became subject to fixed obligations to the king the process generally referred to today as the infeudation of England that by the time of the famous Domesday survey, a scant twenty years after Hastings, it was possible to assign to almost every rock and stone of English soil its precise duty to the Crown." Thomas F. Bergin & Paul G. Haskell, Preface to Estates in Land and Future Interests 3 (2d ed. 1984).

infibulation See FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION.

inficiari .See INFITIARI.

inficiatio See INFlTIATIO.

infidel (in-fa-dal). 1. A person who does not believe in something specified, esp. a particular religion. 2. A person who violates a feudal oath of fealty.

infidelis (in-fi-dee-lis or -del-is). [Latin]. 1. INFIDEL (1). 2. INFIDEL (2).

infidelitas (in-fi-dee-la-tas or -del-a-tas), [Latin]. Infidelity; faithlessness to one's feudal oath. "Many of the smaller misdeeds were regarded as exhibitions of an infidelitas, which, however, did not amount to a felonia." 2 Frederick Pollock & Frederic W. Maitland, The Historv of English Law Before the Time of Edward I 513-14 (2d ed. 1899).

infidelity Unfaithfulness to an obligation; esp., marital unfaithfulness. Cf. ADULTERY.

infiduciare (in-fi-d[y]oo-shee-air-ee), vb. [Law Latin]. To pledge property.

infirmative adj. Rare. (Of evidence) tending to weaken or invalidate a criminal accusation <an infirmative fact>. Cf. CRIMlNATlVE.

infirmative hypothesis An approach to a criminal case in which the defendant's innocence is assumed, and incriminating evidence is explained in a manner consistent with that assumption.

infirmity (in-far-ma-tee), Physical weakness caused by age or disease; esp., in insurance law, an applicant's ill health that is poor enough to deter an insurance company from insuring the applicant. infirm, adj.

infitiari (in-fish-ee-air-i), vb. [Latin "to deny"] Roman law. To deny a plaintiff's allegation; esp., to deny liability on a debt. Also spelled injiciari.

infitiatio (in-fish-ee-ay-shee-oh), n. [Latin] Roman law. The denial of a debt or liability; the denial of a plaintiff's allegation. - Also spelled injiciatio. PI. infitationes (in-fish -ee-ay -shee-oh -neez).

inflammatory (in-flam-a-tor-ee), adj. Tending to cause strong feelings of anger, indignation, or other type of upset; tending to stir the passions. Evidence can be excluded if its inflammatory nature outWeighs its probative value.

inflation A general increase in prices coinciding with a fall in the real value of money. Cf. DEFLATION. in flationary, adj.

inflation rate The pace of change in the prices ofgoods and services in a particular period. The primary indexes for measuring the rate are the Consumer Price Index and the Producer Price Index.

infliction of emotional distress 1. See lNTENTIONAL INFLlCTlON OF EMOTIONAL DISTRESS. 2. See NEGLlGENT INFLICTION OF EMOTIONAL DISTRESS.

influence district A voting district in which a racial or ethnic minority group does not constitute a majority of the voters, but does make up a sufficient proportion of the voters to constitute an influential minority, thus being able to elect its preferred candidate with a reasonable number of crossover votes from other groups. Cf. majority-minority district.

influence district- See DISTRICT.

in-force patent See PATENT (3).

in-force patent A patent that has not expired or been ruled invalid.

informa delicti (in for-ma di-lik-ti). [Latin]. In the form of a delict.

informal adj. Not done or performed in accordance with normal forms or procedures <an informal proceeding>.

informal acknowledgment A father's recognition of a child as his own not by a written declaration but by receiving the child into his family or supporting the child and otherwise treating the child as his own off spring.

informal acknowledgment- See ACKNOWLEDGMENT.

informal agency action Administrative-agency activity other than adjudication or rulemaking, such as investigation, publicity, or supervision. Cf. RULEMAKING.

informal application See PATENT APPLICATION.

informal application A patent application that is not in the correct form as required by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. According to the Manual of Patent Examining Procedure, an application is informal if it is printed on both sides of the paper, or is not permanent, legible, or reproducible. An informal application may be corrected and still retain the original filing date.

informal consideration Consideration without limit on how often a member may speak to the same question. Informal consideration is substantially equivalent to consideration in committee of the whole or quasi committee of the whole, without the fiction of the assembly resolving itself into a committee. See committee of the whole under COMMITTEE.

informal consideration- See CONSIDERATION (2).

informal contract 1. A contract other than one under seal, a recognizance, or a negotiable instrument; specif., that derives its force not from the observance of formalities but because ofthe presence in the transaction of certain elements that are usu. present when people make promises with binding intent - namely mutual assent and consideration (or a device other than consideration). An informal contract may be made with or without a writing. Most modern contracts are informal. - Also termed bargain; simple contract. 2. See parol contract. "In general, there are five essential elements to the formation of an informal contract. These are: (1) mutual assent; (2) consideration or some other validation device; (3) two or more contracting parties (no person may contract with hi mself); (4) parties having legal capacity to contract; (5) the absence of any statute or common-law rule declaring the particular transaction to be void. The fourth and fifth elements are essential to the creation of any contract, formal or informal. The first, second and third elements are essential to the formation of informal contracts." John Edward Murray Jr., Murray on Contracts § 17, at 28 (2d ed. 1974).

informal contract- See CONTRACT.

informal disposition The termination of a case by means other than trial; any action that leads to disposition without conviction and without a judicial determination of guilt, such as guilty pleas and decisions not to prosecute. 3. Temperament or character; personal makeup <a surly disposition>. dispose, vb. dispositive, adj.

informal disposition- See DISPOSITION (2).

informal dividend A payment of salary, rent, interest, or the like to or for a shareholder as a substitute for a dividend. Also termed disguised dividend.

informal dividend- See DIVIDEND.

informal drawing A drawing that does not comply with the formatting requirements of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office .o A drawing may be submitted as informal by the patent applicant, or declared informal by the PTa Drafter. Cf. formal drawing.

informal drawing- See DRAWING.

informal immunity See pocket immunity under IMMUNITY (3).

informal issue An issue that arises when a defendant does not properly or fully plead in answer to a material allegation.

informal issue See ISSUE (1).

informal marriage See common-law marriage under MARRIAGE (1).

informal probate Probate designed to operate with minimal input and supervision of the probate court. Most modern probate codes encourage this type of administration, with an independent personal representative. - Also termed independent probate. Cf. independent executor under EXECUTOR.

informal probate See PROBATE.

informal proceeding See PROCEEDING.

informal proceeding A trial conducted in a more relaxed manner than a typical court trial, such as an administrative hearing or a trial in small-claims court.

informal proof of claim See PROOF OF CLAIM.

informal proofof claim A proof of claim stating a creditor s demand for payment and intent to hold the debtor s bankruptcy estate liable, but that does not comply with the Bankruptcy Code s form for proofs of claim. A late-filed proof of claim may be given effect if the creditor had timely filed an informal proof of claim.

informal rulemaking Agency rulemaking in which the agency publishes a proposed regulation and receives public comments on the regulation, after which the regulation can take effect without the necessity of a formal hearing on the record. Informal rulemaking is the most common procedure followed by an agency in issuing its substantive rules. - Also termed notice-and-comment rulemaking. See NOTICE-AND-COMMENT PERIOD. Cf. formal rulemaking.

informal rulemaking See RULEMAKING.