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seneschal (sen-a-shal), n. [Law French]. 1. A French title of office, equivalent to a steward in England. A seneschal was originally a dukes lieutenant or a lieutenant to other dignities of the kingdom. 2. The steward of a manor. 3. An administrative or judicial officer, such as the governor of a city or province. Also termed senescallus.

senility Mental feebleness or impairment caused by old age. A senile person (in the legal, as opposed to the popular, sense) is incompetent to enter into a binding contract or to execute a will. Also termed senile dementia (see-nil di-men-shee-a). senile, adj.

senior 1. (Of a debt, etc.) first; preferred, as over junior obligations. 2. (Of a person) older than someone else. 3. (Of a person) higher in rank or service. 4. (Of a man) elder, as distinguished from the mans son who has the same name.

senior administrative patent judge See JUDGE.

senior administrative patent judge A semiretired administrative patent judge who remains active in hearing interferences in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Abbr. SAPJ.

senior counsel 1. See lead counsel under COUNSEL. 2. See KINds COUNSEL; QUEEN COUNSEL.

senior counsel 1. See lead counsel. 2. See KING'S COUNSEL; QUEEN'S COUNSEL.

senior debt A debt that takes priority over other debts. Senior debts are often secured by collateral.

senior debt See DEBT.

senior interest An interest that takes precedence over others; esp., a debt security or preferred share that has a higher claim on a corporations assets and earnings than that of a junior obligation or common share.

senior interest See INTEREST (2).

senior judge See JUDGE.

senior judge 1. The judge who has served for the longest time on a given court. 2. A federal or state judge who qualifies for senior status and chooses this status over retirement. See SENIOR STATUS.

senior lien See LIEN.

senior mortgage See MORTGAGE.

senior partner See PARTNER.

senior partner A high-ranking partner, as in a law firm.

senior party In an interference proceeding, the first person to file an application for a propertys legal protection, e.g., an invention patent or a trademark registration. In the United States, merely being the first to file does not entitle the party to the protection. The proceedings administrator also takes other factors into account. For instance, in a patentinterference proceeding the inventions conception date and the inventors diligence in reducing the invention to practice are relevant factors. Priority in the filing date is prima facie evidence that the senior party is the first inventor, so the challenger has the burden of proof. Cf. JUNIOR PARTY.

senior security A security of a class having priority over another class as to the distribution of assets or the payment of dividends. 15 USCA § 77r(d)(4).

senior security See SECURITY.

senior status The employment condition of a semiretired judge who continues to perform certain judicial duties that the judge is willing and able to undertake.

senior user The first person to use a mark. That person is usu_ found to be the marks owner. Also termed first user. Cf. JUNIOR USER.

seniority 1. The preterential status, privileges, or rights given to an employee based on the employees length of service with an employer. Employees with seniority may receive additional or enhanced benefit packages and obtain competitive advantages over fellow employees in layoff and promotional decisions. 2. The status of being older or senior.

seniority system Employment law. Any arrangement that recognizes length of service in making decisions about job layoffs and promotions or other advancements.

sensitivity training One or more instructional sessions for management and employees, designed to counteract the callous treatment of others, esp. women and minorities, in the workplace.

sensus (sen-sas). [Latin]. Sense; meaning; signification. The word appears in its inflected form in phrases such as malo sensu ("an evil sense"), mitiori sensu ("in a milder sense"), and sensu honesto nn an honest sense").

sentence The judgment that a court formally pronounces after finding a criminal defendant guilty; the punishment imposed on a criminal wrongdoer <a sentence of 20 years in prison>. See Fed. R. Crim. P. 32. Also termed judgment of conviction.- sentence, vb.

sentence bargain See PLEA BARGAIN.

sentence bargain A plea bargain in which a prosecutor agrees to recommend a lighter sentence in exchange for a plea ofeither guilty or no contest from the defendant.

sentence cap A pretrial plea agreement in a court -martial proceeding by which a ceiling is placed on the maximum penalty that can be imposed.

sentenced to time served A sentencing disposition whereby a criminal defendant is sentenced to the same jail time that the defendant is credited with serving while in custody awaiting trial. The sentence results in the defendants release from custodv. Cf. BALANCE OF SENTENCE SUSPENDED.

sentence-factor manipulation See sentencing entrapment under ENTRAPMENT.

sentence-package rule Criminal procedure. The principle that a defendant can be resentenced on an aggregate sentence that is, one arising from a conviction on multiple counts in an indictment when the defendant successfully challenges part of the conviction, as by successfully challenging some but not all of the counts.

sentencing The judicial determination of the penalty for a crime.

sentencing bearing See PRESENTENCE HEARING.

sentencing council A panel of three or more judges who confer to determine a criminal sentence. Sentencing by a council occurs less frequently than sentencing by a Single trial judge.

sentencing entrapment Entrapment of a defendant who is predisposed to commit a lesser offense but who is unlawfully induced to commit a more serious offense that carries a more severe sentence. Also termed sentence-factor manipulation.

sentencing entrapment See ENTRAPMENT.

sentencing guidelines A set of standards for determining the punishment that a convicted criminal should receive, based on the nature of the crime and the offenders criminal history. The federal government and several states have adopted sentencing guidelines in an effort to make judicial sentencing more consistent.

sentencing hearing See PRESENTENCE HEARING.

sentencing phase See PENALTY PHASE.

Sentencing Reform Act of 1984 A federal statute enacted to bring greater uniformity to punishments assessed for federal crimes by creating a committee of federal judges and other officials (the United States Sentencing Commission) responsible for producing sentencing gUidelines to be used by the federal courts. 28 USCA § 994(a)(1).

Sentencing Table A reference guide used by federal courts to calculate the appropriate punishment under the sentencing guidelines by taking into account the gravity of the offense and the convicted persons criminal history.

sententia (sen-ten-shee-a), n. [Latin] Roman & civil law. 1. Sense; meaning. 2. An opinion, esp. a legal opinion. 3. A judicial decision.

sententia voluntatis (sen-ten-shee-a vol-an-tay-tis). [Law Latin]. The determination of the will.

SEP abbr. See simplified employee pension plan under EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLAN.

separability An element of various judicial tests used to determine whether a design in a functional article is a copyrightable work of applied art, or an uncopyrightable industrial design, the test being based on whether the beholder separates the works artistic appearance from its useful function. Some courts use a strict physical separability test, but most look at whether the works two roles are conceptually separate.

separability clause See SEVERABILITY CLAUSE.

separable adj. Capable of being separated or divided <a separable controversy>.

separable controversy See CONTROVERSY.

separable controversy A claim that is separate and independent from the other claims being asserted in a suit. This term is most often associated with the statute that permits an entire case to be removed to federal court if one of the claims, being separate and independent from the others, presents a federal question that is within the jurisdiction of the federal courts. 28 USCA § 144l(c). 3. Constitutional law. A case that requires a definitive determination of the law on the facts alleged for the adjudication of an actual dispute, and not merely a hypothetical, theoretical, or speculative legal issue. Also termed (in senses 2 & 3) actual controversy. See CASE-OR-CONTROVERSY REQUIREMENT. "What is a 'case or controversy' that is justiciable in the federal courts? The answer of Chief Justice Hughes is classic if cryptic. He said: 'A controversy in this sense must be one that is appropriate for judicial determination. A justiciable controversy is thus distinguished from a difference or dispute of a hypothetical character; from one that is academic or moot. The controversy must be definite and concrete, touching the legal relations of parties having adverse legal interests. It must be a real and substantial controversy admitting of specific relief through a decree of a conclusive character, as distinguished from an opinion adVising what the law would be upon a hypothetical state of facts.' [Aetna Life Ins. Co. v. Haworth, 300 U.S. 227, 240-41, 57 S.Ct. 461,464 (1937) (Hughes, CJ.).] Unfortunately, this definition, though often quoted, turns upon labels that the Court had used in the past to describe cases before it, and the labels themselves are 'elastiC, inconstant, and imprecise.'" Charles Alan Wright, The Law of Federal Courts § 12, at 60-61 (5th ed. 1994).

separaliter (sep-a-ray-la-tar). [Latin]. Separately. This term was formerly used in an indictment to emphasize that multiple defendants were being charged with separate offenses, when it appeared from the general language of the indictment that the defendants were jointly charged.

separate adj. (Of liability, cause of action, etc.) individual; distinct; particular; disconnected.

separate goodwill See personal goodwill under GOODWILL.

separate action 1. An action brought alone by each of several complainants who are all involved in the same transaction but either cannot legally join the suit or, not being required to join, choose not to join it. 2. One of several distinct actions brought by a Single plaintiff against each of two or more parties who are all liable to a plaintiff with respect to the same subject matter. Also termed several action.

separate action See ACTION (4).

separate and apart See LIVING SEPARATE AND APART.

separate caucus A confidential mediation session that a mediator holds with an individual party to elicit settlement offers and demands. When separate caucuses are used, the mediator typically shuttles between the two (or more) sides of a dispute to communicate offers and demands. Formerlv, ABA Model Rule of Professional Responsibility 2:2 (governing when a lawyer could act for more than one client or as an intermediary between parties) applied when a lawyer acted as a mediator. Although the rule was deleted from the Model in 2002, many states have similar rules in effect. The rule requires a lawyer acting as an intermediary to inform the parties about mediation and the mediator's role, to act impartially, and to have a good-faith belief that the matter can be resolved in all parties' best interests.

separate caucus See CAUCUS.

separate count See COUNT.

separate count One of two or more criminal charges contained in one indictment, each charge constituting a separate indictment for which the accused may be tried.

separate covenant See several covenant under COVENANT (1).

separate demise See DEMISE.

separate demise In an ejectment action, a demise made solely by the lessor.

separate estate The individual property of one of two persons who stand in a marital or business relationship. See SEPARATE PROPERTY.

separate estate See ESTATE (1).

separate examination 1. The private interrogation of a witness, apart from the other witnesses in the same case. 2. The interrogation of a wife outside the presence of her husband by a court clerk or notary for the purpose of acknowledging a deed or other instrument. This was done to ensure that the wife signed without being coerced to do so by her husband.

separate goodwill See personal goodwill.

separate maintenance See MAINTENANCE.

separate offense See OFFENSE (1).

separate offense 1. An offense arising out of the same event as another offense but containing some differences in elements of proof. A person may be tried, convicted, and sentenced for each separate offense. 2. An offense arising out of a different event entirely from another offense under consideration.

separate property See SEPARATE PROPERTY.

separate property 1. Property that a spouse owned before marriage or acquired during marriage by inheritance or by gift from a third party, and in some states property acquired during marriage but after the spouses have entered into a separation agreement and have begun living apart or after one spouse has commenced a divorce action. Also termed individual property. Cf. COMMUNITY PROPERTY; marital property under PROPERTY. 2. In some common-law states, property titled to one spouse or acquired by one spouse individually during marriage. 3. Property acquired during the marriage in exchange for separate property (in sense 1 or sense 2).

separate return See TAX RETURN.

separate return A return filed by each spouse separately, showing income and liability. Unlike with a joint return, each spouse is individually liable only for taxes due on the separate return.

separate support See separate maintenance under MAINTENANCE.

separate trading of registered interest and principal of securities A treasury security by which the owner receives either principal or interest, but usu. not both. - Abbr. STRIP.

separate trial See TRIAL.

separate-but-equal doctrine The now-defunct doctrine that African-Americans could be segregated if they were provided with equal opportunities and facilities in education, public transportation, and jobs. This rule was established in Plessy v. Ferguson, 163 U.S. 537, 16 S.Ct. 1138 (1896), and overturned in Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483, 74 S.Ct. 686 (1954).

separate-property state See COMMON• LAW STATE (2).

separate-sovereigns rule Criminal procedure. The principle that a person may be tried twice for the same offense despite the Double Jeopardy Clause - if the prosecutions are conducted by separate sovereigns, as by the federal government and a state government or by two different states. See DOUBLE JEOPARDY.

separate-spheres doctrine The common-law doctrine that wives were limited to control of the home the personal or domestic sphere and that husbands had control of the public sphere. Under this-early-19th century doctrine, the wife was to tend to the home and family and the husband was to be the breadwinner. - Also termed doctrine ofseparate spheres.

separatim (sep-a-ray-tim). [Latin]. Severally. This term referred to the formation of several covenants in a deed.

separatio (sep-a-ray-shee-oh), n. See FRUCTUS (1).

separatio bonorum See BENEFICIUM SEPARATIONIS.

separatio tori (sep-a-ray-shee-oh tor-i). [Law Latin]. A separation of the marriage bed. See A MENSA ETTHORO.

separation 1. An arrangement whereby a husband and wife live apart from each other while remaining married, either by mutual consent (often in a written agreement) or by judicial decree; the act of carrying out such an arrangement. - Also termed separation from bed and board. See divorce a mensa et thoro under DIVORCE. 2. The status of a husband and wife having begun such an arrangement, or the judgment or contract that brought about the arrangement. - Also termed (in both senses) legal separation; judicial separation. 3. Cessation of a contractual relationship, esp. in an employment situation. - separate, vb.

separation a mensa et thoro See divorce a mensa et thoro under DIVORCE.

separation agreement 1. An agreement between spouses in the process of a divorce or legal separation concerning alimony, maintenance, property division, child custody and support, and the like. Also termed separation order (if approved or sanctioned judicially). See temporary order under ORDER. 2. DIVORCE AGREEMENT.

separation agreement See SEPARATION AGREEMENT.

separation from bed and board 1. SEPARATION (1). 2. See divorce a mensa et thoro under DIVORCE.

separation of patrimony The act of providing creditors of a succession the right to collect against the class of estate property from which the creditors should be paid, by separating certain succession property from property rights belonging to the heirs.

separation of powers The division of governmental authOrity into three branches ofgovernment legislative, executive, and judicial - each with specified duties on which neither of the other branches can encroach; a constitutional doctrine of checks and balances designed to protect the people against tyranny. Cf. DIVISION OF POWERS. "[T]he doctrine of the separation of powers was adopted by the convention of 1787 not to promote efficiency but to preclude the exercise of arbitrary power. The purpose was not to avoid friction, but, by means of the inevitable friction incident to the distribution of the governmental powers among three departments, to save the people from autocracy." Justice Louis Brandeis (as quoted in Roscoe Pound, The Development of Constitutional Guarantees of Liberty 94 (1957)). "Although in political theory much has been made of the vital importance of the separation of powers, it is extraordinarily difficult to define precisely each particular power. In an ideal state we might imagine a legislature which had supreme and exclusive power to lay down general rules for the future without reference to particular cases; courts whose sale function was to make binding orders to settle disputes between IndiViduals which were brought before them by applying these rules to the facts which were found to exist; an administrative body which carried on the business of government by issuing particular orders or making decisions of policy within the narrow confines of rules of law that it could not change. The legislature makes, the executive executes, and the judiciary construes the law." George Whitecross Paton, A Textbook of Jurisprudence 330 (GW. Paton & David P. Derham eds., 4th ed. 1972).

separation of witnesses The exclusion of witnesses (other than the plaintiff and defendant) from the courtroom to prevent them from hearing the testimony of others.

separation order 1. See SEPARATION AGREEMENT. 2. See ORDER (2).

separation order A court order granting a married person s request for a legal separation. See SEPARATION AGREEMENT (1).

separation pay See SEVERANCE PAY.

separator Oil & gas. Equipment used at a well site to separate oil, water, and gas produced in solution with oil. Basic separators simply heat oil to speed the natural separation process, More complex separators may use chemicals.

separatum tenementum (sep-a-ray-tam ten-a-men-tam). [Law Latin]. A separate tenement.

SEP-IRA See simplified employee pension plan under EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLAN.