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allurement Torts. An attractive object that tempts a trespassing child to meddle when the child ought to abstain. See ATTRACTIVE-NUISANCE DOCTRINE. Cf. attractive nuisance under NUISANCE.

alluvial mining The practice of removing sand and gravel from a riverbed.

alluvio maris (a-Ioo-vee-oh mar-is). [Latin "alluvion of the sea"]. The formation of soil or land from the sea.

alluvion (a-Ioo-vee-an). [fr. Latin alluvio "flood"]. Roman & civil law. 1. Strictly, the flow or wash of water against a shore or riverbank. 2. An accumulation of soil, clay, or other material deposited by water; esp., in land law, an addition ofland caused by the buildup of deposits from running water, the added land then belonging to the owner of the property to which it is added. - Also termed alluvium. 3. Louisiana law. An accumulation of soil, clay, or other material deposited on the bank of a river . In Louisiana, lands formed on a seashore or the bank of a navigable lake are not alluvion. They belong to the state rather than the riparian owners. Cf. ACCRETION (1); AVULSION (2); DELICTION; EROSION. - alluvial, adj. - alluviate, vb. - alluviation, n.

alluvium See ALLUVION (2).

ally 1. A nation tied to another by treaty or alliance. 2. A citizen or subject of an allied nation.

almaria (al-mair-ee-a). [Latin "cupboard, bookcase"]. The archives of a church or library. Also termed armaria.

almoign (al-moyn). [Law French "alms"]. 1. Alms; a church treasury; an ecclesiastical possession. 2.FRANKALMOIN.

almoin See FRANKALMOIN.

almoner (al-ma-nar).A person charged with distributing the alms of a monarch, religious house, or other institution. This office was first instituted in religious houses and although formerly one of importance is now almost a sinecure.

alms (ahmz or ahlmz). Charitable donations; any type of relief bestowed on the poor.

alms fee A fee held by frankalmoin. See FRANKALMOIN.

alms land Land held in frankalmoin. See FRANKALMOIN.

almshouse Archaic. A dwelling for the publicly or privately supported poor of a city or county.

alnager (al-na-jar). [Law Latin]. Hist. A royal official responsible for collecting taxes (the alnage) on woolen cloth. The tax was abolished in 1699.

alod See ALLODIUM.

alode See ALLODIUM.

alodium See ALLODIUM.

alpha subclass Patents. In U.S. patent law, a patent classification that has an alphabetic suffix.

alpha testing Intellectual property. The first phase of operational experimenting with a software program before the program's production release, usu. at the developer's site. Often, alpha testing involves only modular or component testing and not system testing. Alpha testing is usu. followed by beta testing, in which the entire system is tested at a customer's site before the product is released to the general public. Cf. BETA TESTING.

Also termed international filing date See PATENT COOPERATION TREATY; PCT FILING.

alta abbr. American Land Title Association.

alta proditio (al-ta proh-dish-ee-oh). [Law Latin]. See TREASON.

alta via (al-ta vi-a). [Law Latin] A highway.

altarage (awl-tar-ij). Eccles. law. 1. The offerings made upon an altar or to a church. 2. An endowment or honorarium received by a priest for services performed at the altar.

alter ego A corporation used by an individual in conducting personal business, the result being that a court may impose liability on the individual by piercing the corporate veil when fraud has been perpetrated on someone dealing with the corporation. See PIERCING THE CORPORATE VEIL.

alteration 1. Property. A substantial change to real estate, esp. to a structure, usu. not involving an addition to or removal of the exterior dimensions of a building's structural parts . Although any addition to or improvement of real estate is by its very nature an alteration, real-estate lawyers habitually use alteration in reference to a lesser change. Still, to constitute an alteration, the change must be substantial- not simply a trifling modification.

altercation A vehement dispute; a noisy argument. "altercation. The traditional view is that this word refers to 'a noisy brawl or dispute,' not rising to the seriousness of physical violence .... But in AmE, the word now often denotes some type of scuffling or fighting, especially in police jargon." Bryan A. Garner, A Dictionary of Modern American Usage 34 (1998).

alter-ego rule 1. Corporations. The doctrine that shareholders will be treated as the owners of a corporation's property, or as the real parties in interest, whenever it is necessary to do so to prevent fraud or to do justice. 2. Criminal law. The principle that one who defends another against attack stands in the position of that other person and can use only the amount of force that the other person could use under the circumstances.

altering or amending a judgment A trial court's act of correcting a substantive mistake in a judgment, as by correcting a manifest error of law or fact. Fed. R. Civ. P. 59(e).

alternat (awl-tar-nit or al-ter-nah). [French]. The rotation in precedence among states, diplomats, etc., esp. in the signing of treaties. This practice gives each diplomat a copy of the treaty with the diplomat's signature appearing first.

alternate Parliamentary law. A proxy for a delegate, usu. chosen in the same manner as the delegate rather than chosen by the delegate. See DELEGATE (2); PROXY (1).

alternate legacy See LEGACY.

alternate valuation date The date six months after a decedent's death. Generally, the estate can elect to appraise the decedent's property either as of the date of the decedent's death or as of the alternate valuation date. See BASIS.

alternatim (al-tar-nay-tim or awl-), adv. [Latin]. Interchangeably; by turns.

Alternative Agricultural Research and Commercialization corporation A federally chartered corporation in the U.S. Department of Agriculture responsible for funding the development and marketing of new nonfood products made from farm and forestry materials. Abbr. AARCC.

alternative constituency See NONSHAREHOLDER CONSTITUENCY.

alternative contract See CONTRACT.

alternative contract- A contract in which the performing party may elect to perform one of two or more specified acts to satisfy the obligation; a contract that provides more than one way for a party to complete performance, usu. permitting that party to choose the manner of performance. - Also termed alternative-methods-of-performance contract.

alternative devise See DEVISE.

alternative devise- A devise that, under the terms of the will, is designed to displace another devise if one or more specified events occur. - Also termed secondary devise.

alternative dispute resolution A procedure for settling a dispute by means other than litigation, such as arbitration or mediation. - Abbr. ADR. Also termed dispute resolution. See ARBITRATION; MEDIATION. "ADR can be defined as encompassing all legally permitted processes of dispute resolution other than litigation. While this definition (or something like it) is widely used, ADR proponents may object to it on the ground that it privileges litigation by giving the impression that litigation is the normal or standard process of dispute resolution, while alternative processes are aberrant or deviant. That impression is false. litigation is a relatively rarely used process of dispute resolution. Alternative processes, especially negotiation, are used far more frequently. Even disputes involving lawyers are resolved by negotiation far more of ten than litigation. So ADR is not defined as everythingbut·litigation because litigation is the norm. Litigation is not the norm. ADR is defined as everything-but·litigation because litigation, as a matter of law, is the default process of dispute resolution." Stephen J. Ware, Alternative Dispute Resolution § 1.5, at 5-6 (2001).

alternative expression Patents. In a patent claim, a recitation of two or more elements or limitations that perform the same function <iron, steel, or other magnetic material> . Although once contrary to U.S. Patent and Trademark Office policy, alternative expressions are now permitted if they present no uncertainty or ambiguity about the scope or clarity of the claims. Also termed alternative language.

alternative judgment A determination that gives the losing party options for satisfying that partys duties.

alternative judgment See JUDGMENT.

alternative liability See LIABILITY.

alternative mandamns See MANDAMUS

alternative minimum tax See TAX.

alternative minimum tax A tax, often a flat rate, potentially imposed on corporations and higherincome individuals to ensure that those taxpayers do not avoid too much (or all) income-tax liability by legitimately using exclusions, deductions, and credits. Abbr. AMT. - Also termed minimum tax.

alternative obligation An obligation that can be satisfied in at least two different ways, at the choice of the obligor. Also termed disju.n~tive obligation

alternative obligation See OBLIGATION.

alternative order An order commanding the person to whom it is directed either to do a specific thing or to show cause why the court should not order it to be done.

alternative order 1. ORDER (2). 2. ORDER (8).

alternative order An order to buy a security by either of two alternatives (e.g., buy a stock at a limited price or buy on a stop order). Also termed either-or order. buy order. An investor s instruction to purchase stock. day order. An order to buy or sell on one particular day only. Cf. open order.

alternative pleading A form of pleading whereby the pleader alleges two or more independent claims or defenses that are not necessarily consistent with each other, such as alleging both intentional infliction of emotional distress and negligent infliction ofemotional distress based on the same conduct. Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(e)(2). Also termed pleading in the alternative. Cf. DUPLICITY (2); double plea under PLEA (3).

alternative pleading See PLEADING (2).

alternative promise See PROMISE.

alternative promise A contractual promise to do one of two or more things, anyone of which qualifies as consideration. "A promise in the alternative may be made because each of the alternative performances is the object of desire to the promisee. Or the promisee may desire one performance only, but the promisor may reserve an alternative which he may deem advantageous. In either type of case the promise is consideration if it cannot be kept without some action or forbearance which would be consideration if it alone were bargained for. But if the promisor has an unfettered choice of alternatives, and one alternative would not have been consideration if separately bargained for, the promise in the alternative is not consideration." Restatement (Second) of Contracts § 77 cmt. b (1981).

alternative relief Judicial relief that is mutually exclusive with another form of judicial relief. In pleading, a party may request alternative relief, as by asking for both specific performance and damages that would be averted by specific performance. Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a). Cf. ELECTION OF REMEDIES.

alternative relief See RELIEF.

alternative remainder A remainder in which the disposition of property is to take effect only if another disposition does not take effect.

alternative remainder See REMAINDER.

alternative sentence See SENTENCE.

alternative sentence A sentence other than incarceration. Examples include community service and victim restitution. Also termed creative sentence.

alternative writ See WRIT.

alternative-means doctrine Criminal law. The principle that when a crime may be committed in more than one way, the jury must be unanimous on the defendant's guilt but need not be unanimous on the possible different methods of committing the crime, as long as each possible method is supported by substantial evidence.

alternative-methods-of-performance contract See alternative contract under CONTRACT.

alternativeness rejection Rejection of a patent claim on the ground that it seeks a broad monopoly on the invention as disclosed and on other unspecified variations. For example, a claim using a phrase such as "and similar materials" would probably be too broad to be allowed.

alternativeness rejection See REJECTION.

alternis vicibus (al-tar-nis nis-i-bas). [Law Latin]. Hist. Eccles. law. By turn; alternately. The patrons of two united churches could exercise their right of presentation to a benefice alternis vicibus.

alterum non laedere (al-tar-am [or awl-] non lee-da-ree). [Latin "not to injure another"]. Roman & civil law. To hurt no one by word or deed. This was one of the three ge~eral precepts in which Justinian expressed the requirements of the law (Digest 1.1.10.1; Institutes 1.1.3). Cf. HONESTE VIVERE; SUUM CUIQUE TRIBUERE.

alteruter (al-tar-yoo-tar or awl-). [Law Latin] One of two; either.

altius non tollendi (al-shee-as non ta-len-di). [Latin "of not raising higher"]. Roman & civil law. A servitude prohibiting a landowner from building a house above a certain height.

altius tollendi (al-shee-as ta-Ien-di). [Latin "of raising higher"]. Roman & civil law. A servitude that allows a landowner to build a house as high as desired.

alto et basso See DE ALTO ET BASSO.

altum mare (al-tam mair-ee or mahr-ee), n. [Law Latin]. Hist. The high seas; the deep seas.

alvei mutatio (al-vee-i myoo-tay-shee-oh). (Latin fro alveus "the bed or channel of a stream"). Hist. A change in astream's course.

alveus (al-vee-as), n. [Law Latin] Hist. The bed or channel through which a stream flows in its ordinary course.

always-speaking statute See speaking statute under STATUTE.

always-speaking statute See speaking statute.

ALWD (ahl-wad or al-wad). abbr. See ASSOCIATION OF LEGAL WRITING DIRECTORS.

alwd citation manual A guide to American legal citation written and edited by legal-wri professionals affiliated with the Association of Legal Writing Directors. First published in 2000 as an alternative to the Bluebook, it contains one citation system for all legal documents and does not distinguish between citations in law-journal footnotes and those in other writings. The full name is the ALWD Citation Manual: A Professional System of Citation. Often shortened to ALWD Manual. Cf. BLUEBOOK.

AMA abbr. 1. American Medical Association. 2. Against medical advice.

amalgamation (a-mal-ga-may-shan), n. The act of combining or uniting; consolidation <amalgamation of two small companies to form a new corporation>. See MERGER (1). - amalgamate, vb. amalgamator, n.

Amalphitan Code (a-mal-fa-tan). Hist. A compilation of maritime law made late in the 11th century at the port of Amalfi near Naples. The Code was regarded as a primary source of maritime law throughout the Mediterranean to the end of the 16th century. Also termed Amalphitan Table; Laws of Amalfi; Tablets of Amalfi.

amanuensis (a-man-yoo-en-sis), n. [fr. Latin ab- "from" + manus "hand"]. 1. One who takes dictation; a scribe or secretary. 2. An assistant, esp. one with scribal responsibilities. 3. A protege. See PROTEGE (1).

amax (am-eks). abbr. AMERICAN STOCK EXCHANGE.

ambactus (am-bak-tas). [Latin]. Hist. 1. A messenger. 2. A servant whose services are hired out by the master.

ambasciator (am-bash-ee-ay-tar). [Law Latin]. Hist. A person sent about in the service of another; an ambassador.

ambassador 1. A diplomatic officer of the highest rank, usu. designated by a government as its resident representative in a foreign state. Ambassadors represent the sovereign as well as the nation and enjoy many privileges while abroad in their official capacity, including immunity. Ambassadors are distinguished from ministers and envoys, who represent only the state where they are from and not the sovereign. Ambassadors are also generally distinguished from certain legates who have only ecclesiastical authority. But the papal nuncio and some legates, such as the legate a latere, bear the rank of ambassador. See NUNCIO; LEGATE. 2. A representative appointed by another. 3. An unofficial or nonappointed representative. Also spelled (archaically) embassador. - ambassadorial, adj. ambassadorship, n.

ambassador extraordinary An ambassador who is employed for a particular purpose or occasion and has limited discretionary powers. Cf. ambassador plenipotentiary.

ambassador leger See resident ambassador.

ambassador ordinary See resident ambassador.

ambassador plenipotentiary An ambassador who has unlimited discretionary powers to act as a sovereign's or government's deputy, esp. to carry out a particular task, such as treaty negotiations. Also termed minister plenipotentiary; envoy plenipotentiary. Cf. ambassador extraordinary.

AMBER abbr. See AMBER ALERT.

Amber Alert A system by which the police can rapidly broadcast to the general public a report of a missing or endangered child by means of radio and television announcements. The alert is named for Amber Hagerman ofTexas, a nine-year-old who was abducted and murdered in 1996 by an unknown person. The system has been adopted by many communities in the U.S. and Canada. Local variations exist. In Arkansas, for example, the system is called the Morgan Nick Alert after a child who was abducted by a stranger in 1995. When the first word is in all capital letters, AMBER is an acronym meaning America's Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response. Also termed Amber Plan. See AMBER'S LAW. Cf. CODE ADAM.

Amber Hagerman Act See AMBER'S LAW.

Amber's law A federal law that requires, among other things, life in prison without parole for two-time sex offenders whose victims are children, and reports to Congress about judges whose sentences fall below federal guidelines. The law was named for Amber Hagerman of Texas, a nine-year-old girl who was abducted and murdered by an unknown person in 1996. Also termed Amber Hagerman Act. See AMBER ALERT.

ambidexter 1. A judge or embracer who takes bribes from both sides in a dispute. 2. A lawyer who abandons the party that he or she initially represented in a dispute to represent the opposing party in the same suit. 3. A person who engages in double-dealing. "Ambidexter is he that, when a matter is in suit between men, takes money of the one side and of the other, either to labour the suit, or such like; or if he be of the jury, to give his verdict." William Rastell, Termes de la Ley 28 (lst. Am. ed. 1812).

ambiguitas latens (am-bi-gyoo-a-tas lay-tenz). See latent ambiguity under AMBIGUITY.