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solemn oath See corporal oath under OATH.

solemn oath See corporal oath.

solemn occasion In some states, the serious and unusual circumstance in which the supreme court is constitutionally permitted to render advisory opinions to the remaining branches of government, as when the legislature doubts the legality of proposed legislation and a determination must be made to allow the legislature to exercise its functions. Some factors that have been considered in determining whether a solemn occasion exists include whether an important question of law is presented, whether the question is urgent, whether the matter is ripe for an opinion, and whether the court has enough time to consider the question.

solemn war See WAR.

solemnitas attachiamentorum (sa-lem-ni-tas a-tach¬ee-a-men-tor-am). lLaw Latin]. The formality required in issuing attachments of property.

solemnity (sa-lem-na-tee). 1. A formality (such as a ceremony) required by law to validate an agreement or action <solemnity of marriage>. 2. The state of seriousness or solemn respectfulness or observance <solemnity of contract>.

solemnity of contract The concept that two people may enter into any contract they wish and that the resulting contract is enforceable if formalities are observed and no defenses exist.

solemnization The performance of a formal ceremony (such as a marriage ceremony) before witnesses, as distinguished from a clandestine ceremony.

solemnize (sol-am-niz), vb. To enter into (a marriage, contract, etc.) by a formal act, usu. before witnesses.

sole-source rule In a false-advertising action at common law, the principle that a plaintiff may not recover unless it can demonstrate that it has a monopoly in the sale of goods possessing the advertised trait, because only then is it clear that the plaintiff would be harmed by the defendants advertising.

solicitation 1. The act or an instance of requesting or seeking to obtain something; a request or petition <a solicitation for volunteers to handle at least one pro bono case per year>. 2. The criminal offense of urging, advising, commanding, or otherwise inciting another to commit a crime <convicted of solicitation of murder>. Solicitation is an inchoate offense distinct from the solicited crime. Under the Model Penal Code, a defendant is guilty of solicitation even if the command or urging was not actually communicated to the solicited person, as long as it was designed to be communicated. Model Penal Code § 5.02(2). Also termed criminal solicitation; incitement. Cf. ATTEMPT (2). 3. An offer to payor accept money in exchange for sex <the prostitute was charged with solicitation>. Also termed soliciting. Cf. PATRONIZING A PROSTITUTE. 4. An attempt or effort to gain business <the attorneys solicitations took the form of radio and television ads>. The Model Rules of Professional Conduct place certain prohibitions on lawyers direct solicitation of potential clients. S. Securities. A request for a proxy; a request to execute, not execute, or revoke a proxy; the furnishing ofa form of proxy; or any other communication to security holders under circumstances reasonably calculated to result in the procurement, withholding, or revocation of a proxy. solicit, vb.

solicitation for bids See INVITATION TO NEGOTIATE.

solicitation of a bribe The crime of asking or enticing another to commit bribery. 18 USCA § 201. See BRIBERY.

solicitation of chastity The act of trying to persuade another person to engage in unlawful sexual intercourse.

solicitee One who is solicited. See SOLICITATION.

soliciting See SOLICITATION (3).

soliciting agent See AGENT (2).

soliciting agent 1. Insurance. An agent with limited authority relating to the solicitation or submission of applications to an insurance company but usu. without authority to bind the insurer, as by accepting the applications on behalf of the company. 2. An agent who solicits orders for goods or services for a principal. 3. A managing agent of a corporation for purposes of service of process.

solicitor 1. A person who seeks business or contributions from others; an advertiser or promoter. 2. A person who conducts matters on anothers behalf; an agent or representative. 3. The chief law officer of a governmental body or a municipality. 4. In the United Kingdom, a lawyer who consults with clients and prepares legal documents but is not generally heard in High Court or (in Scotland) Court of Session unless specially licensed. Cf. BARRISTER. 5. See speCial agent under INSURANCE AGENT. 6. A prosecutor (in some jurisdictions, such as South Carolina). 7. See special agent under INSURANCE AGENT.

solicitor general The second-highestranking legal officer in a government (after the attorney general); esp., the chief courtroom lawyer for the executive branch. - Abbr. SG. PI. solicitors general. By [federaillaw, only the Solicitor General or his designee can conduct and argue before the Supreme Court cases in which the United States is interested. Thus, if a trial court appoints a special, independent prosecutor in order to prosecute a criminal contempt of court, that court-appointed special prosecutor cannot represent the United States in seeking Supreme Court review of any lower court decision unless the Solicitor General authorizes the filing of such a petition .... Although the Solicitor General serves at the pleasure of the President, by tradition the Solicitor General also acts with independence. Thus, if the Solicitor General does not believe in the legal validity of the arguments that the government wants presented, he will refuse to sign the brief. In close cases the Solicitor General will sign the brief but tag on a disclaimer that has become known as tying a tin can. The disclaimer would state, for example. The foregoing is presented as the position of the Internal Revenue Service. The justices would then know that the Solicitor General, although not withholding a legal argument, was not personally sponsoring or adopting the particular legal position." Ronald D. Rotunda & John E. Nowak, Treatise on Constitutional Law § 2.2, at 86-88 (3d ed. 1999).

solicitor s hypothec See HYPOTHEC.

solicitor's hypothec A legal agent's lien for costs in excess of the costs recovered from an opposing party. The lien may also apply to the retention of some documents, such as title deeds, as security for a client's outstanding account.

solidarity The state of being jointly and severally liable (as for a debt). See solidary obligation under OBLIGATION. - solidarily, adv.

solidary (sol-a-der-ee), adj. (Of a liability or obligation) joint and several. See JOINT AND SEVERAL. "It is a single debt of £100 owing by each of them, in such fashion that each of them may be compelled to pay the whole of it, but that when it is once paid by either of them, both are discharged from it. Obligations of this description may be called solidary, Since in the language of Roman law, each of the debtors is bound in solidum instead of pro parte; that is to say, for the whole, and not for a proportionate part. A solidary obligation, therefore, may be defined as one in which two or more debtors owe the same thing to the same creditor." John Salmond, jurisprudence 462-63 (Glanville l. Williams ed., 10th ed. 1947).

solidary liability See LIABILITY.

solidary obligation [sol-a-der-ee). Roman & civil law. An obligation that binds each of two or more debtors for the entire performance at the option of the creditor. Solidary obligations are analogous to common-law joint and several obligations. "A solidary obligation means the separate liability of several persons in respect of one and the same object. The normal case of a solidary obligation is ajoint delict, as when two or more persons, acting jointly, do damage to property or commit a theft. So far as the obligation creates a duty to pay damages, it is solidary. Each of the co-delinquents is liable to make good the whole of the same damage." Rudolph Sohm, The Institutes: A Textbook of the History and System of Roman Private Law 361-62 Uames Crawford Ledlie trans., 3d ed. 1907).

solidary obligation See OBLIGATION.

solidum (sol-a-dam), n. [Latin] Roman law. A whole; an undivided thing. See SOLIDARY.

solinum (sa-li-nam), n. [Law Latin]. 1. Slightly less than two and a half plowlands. 2. A Single plowland.

solitary confinement Separate confinement that gives a prisoner extremely limited access to other people; esp., the complete isolation of a prisoner.

sollertia (sa-lar-shee-a). [Latin]. Shrewdness; resourcefulness; cleverness.

solo See SOLE PRACTITIONER.

solo animo (soh-Ioh an-a-moh). [Latin]. By mere intention.

solo practitioner See SOl.E PRACTITIONER.

Solomon Amendment A federal law authorizing the Secretary of Defense to withhold federal funding from schools that do not allow military recruiters on their campuses or deny access equal to that enjoyed by other types of recruiters. The amendment is named for Representative Gerald B.H. Solomon of New York. 10 USCA § 983.

solum italicum (soh-lam i-tal-a-kam). [Latin "Italian land"] Roman law. Land in Italy (an extension of the old ager Romanus) needing, for full ownership to pass, to be transferred by formal methods, such as mancipatio or cession in jure. Cf. solum provinciale.

solum provinciale (soh-lam pra--vin-shee-ay-lee). [Latin "provincial land"] Roman law. Provincial land ultimately held by the Emperor or state, with private holders having only, in theory, a possessory title without the right to transfer the property by formal methods, as distinguished from solum italicum. Justinian abolished all distinctions between the two, allowing all land to be conveyed by traditio. Cf. SOl.UM ITALICUM. "Ownership of provincial land. The dominium of this was in Caesar or the populus according as it was an imperial or a senatorial province .... The holders were practically owners, but as they were not domini formal methods of transfer were not applicable. The holdings were however transferable informally .... The case disappeared when Justinian abolished the distinction between Italic and provincial land. Not all land in the provinces was solum provinciale: many provincial communities were given ius italicum, the chief result being that the land was in the dominium of the holder and not of the State, so that it could be transferred and claimed at law by civil law methods. W.W. Buckland, A Text•Book of Roman Law from Augustus to justinian 190 (Peter Stein ed., 3d ed. 1963).

solus cum sola in loco suspecto (soh-las kam soh-la in loh-koh sa-spek-toh). [Law Latin]. A man alone with a woman in a suspicious place.

solutio (sa-loo-shee-oh), n. [Latin "payment"] Roman law. Performance of an obligation; satisfaction. PI. solutiones (sa-loo-shee-oh-neez).

solutio indebiti (sa-loo-shee-oh in-deb-il-ti). [Latin "payment of what is not owing"] Roman law. Payment of a nonexistent debt. If the payment was made in error, the recipient had a duty to give back the money.

solutio obligationis (sa-loo-shee-oh ob-li-gay-shee-oh¬nis). Roman law. The unfastening of a legal bond, so that a party previously bound need not perform any longer. Cf. VINCULUM JURIS.

solutus (sa-loo-tas), adj. [Latin fr. solvere "to loose"] 1. Roman law. Set free; released from obligation or confinement. 2. Scots law. Purged, esp. in reference to counsel.

solvabilite (sawl-vah-beel-ee-tay), n. [French] French law. Solvency.

solvency The ability to pay debts as they come due. Cf. INSOLVENCY. solvent, ad).

solvendo esse (sol-ven-doh es-ee). [Latin]. To be solvent; to be able to pay an obligation.

solvendum in futuro (sol-ven-dam- in f[y]oo-t[y]oor-oh). [Latin "to be paid in the future"]. (Of a debt) due now but payable in the future. solvent debtor. See DEBTOR.

solvent debtor A debtor who owns enough property to cover all outstanding debts and against whom a creditor can enforce a judgment.

solvere (sol-va-ree), vb. [Latin "to unbind"] Roman law. To pay (a debt); to release (a person) from an obligation.

solvere poenas (sal-veer-ee pee-nas). [Latin]. To pay the penalty.

solvit (sol-vit). [Latin] He paid; paid.

solvit ad diem (sol-vit ad di-am). [Law Latin "he paid on the day"]. In a debt action, a plea that the defendant paid the debt on the due date.

solvit ante diem (sol-vit an-tee di-am). [Law Latin "he paid before the day"]. In a debt action, a plea that the defendant paid the money before the due date.

solvit post diem (sol-vit pohst di-am). [Law Latin "he paid after the day"]. In a debt action on a bond, a plea that the defendant paid the debt after the due date but before commencement of the lawsuit.

somnambulism (sahm-nam-bya-liz-am). Sleep-walking. Generally, a person will not be held criminally responsible for an act performed while in this state. See AUTOMATISM.

somnolentia (sahm-na-lan-shee-a). 1. The state of drowsiness. 2. A condition of incomplete sleep resembling drunkenness, during which part of the faculties are abnormally excited while the others are dormant; the combined condition of sleeping and wakefulness prodUcing a temporary state of involuntary intoxication. To the extent that it destroys moral agency, somnolentia may be a defense to a criminal charge.

son 1. A persons male child, whether natural or adopted; a male of whom one is the parent. 2. An immediate male descendant. 3. Slang. Any young male person.

son assault demesne (sohn a-sawlt di-mayn). [French "his own assault"] The plea of self-defense in a tort action, by which the defendant alleges that the plaintiff originally engaged in an assault and that the defendant used only the force necessary to repel the plaintiffs assault and to protect person and property. See SELFDEFENSE.

son-in-law The husband of ones daughter.

Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act A federal law extending the copyright term by 20 years for all works published in the U.S. after January 1, 1978, and settling the copyright term for works created before 1978 as 95 years from the original copyright date. Before the extension, the copyright term was the life of the author plus 50 years. Pub. L. 105-298,112 Stat. 2827.

Son-of-Sam law A state statute that prohibits a convicted criminal from profiting by selling his or her story rights to a publisher or filmmaker. State law usu. authorizes prosecutors to seize royalties from a convicted criminal and to place the money in an escrow account for the crime victims benefit. This type of law was first enacted in New York in 1977, in response to the lucrative book deals that publishers offered David Berkowitz, the serial killer who called himself Son of Sam. In 1992, the U.S. Supreme Court declared New Yorks Son-of-Sam law unconstitutional as a contentbased speech regulation, prompting many states to amend their laws in an attempt to avoid constitutionality problems. Simon & Schuster, Inc. v. New York State Crime Victims Bd., 502 U.S. 105, 112 S.Ct. 501 (1992).

sonticus (sahn-ti-kas), n. [Latin] Roman law. Serious; more than trivial. The term was used in the Twelve Tables to refer to a serious illness (morbus sonticus) that gave a defendant a valid reason not to appear in court.

Sony doctrine See COMMERCIALLY SIGNIFICANT NONINFRINGING USE.

sophisticated investor See INVESTOR.

sophisticated investor An investor who has sufficient knowledge and experience of financial matters to be capable of evaluating a securitys qualities. Sophisticated investors do not require the full protection of securities laws.

soror (sor-or), n. [Latin] Roman law. A sister.

sororicide (sa-ror-a-sid). 1. The act of killing ones own sister. 2. A person who kills his or her sister. Cf. FRATRICIDE. sororicidal, adj.

sors (sors), n. [Latin] 1. Roman law. A lot; a chance. 2. Scots law. A partnerships capital. 3. Principal, as distinguished from interest. 4. Something recovered in an action, as distinguished from mere costs.

sortitio (sor-tish-ee-oh), n. [Latin fro sortiri "to cast lots"] Roman law. The drawing of lots, used, for example, in selecting judges for a criminal trial. Also termed (in English) sortition; sortilege.

soul scot Eccles. law. See MORTUARY. Also written soul shot.

soul scot See MORTUARY (3).

soul shot See MORTUARY (3).

sound 1. To be actionable (in) <her claims for physical injury sound in tort, not in contract>. 2. To be recoverable (in) <his tort action sounds in damages, not in equitable relief>.

sound 1. (Of health, mind, etc.) good; whole; free from disease or disorder. 2. (Of property) good; marketable. 3. (Of discretion) exercised equitably under the circumstances. soundness, n.

sound health 1. A policy applicants good mental and physical condition; a state of health characterized by a lack of grave impairment or disease, or of any ailment that seriously affects the applicants health. 2. GOOD HEALTH.

sound health See SOUND HEALTH.

sound mind 1. MIND (2). 2. See testamentary capacity under CAPACITY (3).

Sound Recording Amendment of 1972 A Copyright Act of 1909 amendment that established copyright protection for sound recordings.

source The originator or primary agent of an act, circumstance, or result <she was the source of the information> <the side business was the source of income>.

source code The nonmachine language used by a computer programmer to create a program. If it is not included with the software sol d to the public, source code is protected by trade secret laws as well as copyright and patent laws. Source code may be depos- ited with the U.S. Copyright Office but, because of the need to protect a trade secret, and because a skilled programmer could figure out how to duplicate the source cods functions without necessarily copying it, strategic parts may be blacked out. Cf. OBJECT CODE.

source of law Something (such as a constitution, treaty, statute, or custom) that provides authority for legislation and for judicial decisions; a point of origin for law or legal analysis. - Also termed fons juris. The term sources of law is ordinarily used in a much narrower sense than will be attributed to it here. In the literature of jurisprudence the problem of sources relates to the question: Where does the judge obtain the rules by which to decide cases? In this sense, among the sources of law will be commonly listed: statutes, judicial precedents, custom, the opinion of experts, morality, and equity. In the usual discussions these various sources of law are analyzed and some attempt is made to state the conditions under which each can appropriately be drawn upon in the decision of legal controversies. Curiously, when a legislature is enacting law we do not talk about the sources from which it derives its decision as to what the law shall be, though an analysis in these terms might be more enlightening than one directed toward the more restricted function performed by judges. Our concern here will be with sources in a much broader sense than is usual in the literature of jurisprudence, Our interest is not so much in sources of laws, as in sources of law. From whence does the law generally draw not only its content but its force in mens lives? Lon L. Fuller, Anatomy of the Law69 (1968). In the context of legal research, the term sources of law can refer to three different concepts which should be distinguished. One, sources of law can refer to the origins of legal concepts and ideas ... Two, sources of law can refer to governmental institutions that formulate legal rules, Three, sources of law can refer to the published anifestations of the law.

South Western Reporter A set of regionallawbooks, part of the West Groups National Reporter System, containing every published appellate decision from Arkansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Tennessee, and Texas, from 1886 to date. - The first series ran from 1886 to 1928; the second series ran until 1999; the third series is the current one. Abbr. S.W.; S.W.2d.; SW.3d.

South Eastern Reporter A set of regionallawbooks, part of the West Groups National Reporter System, containing every published appellate decision from Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia, from 1887 to date. - The first series ran from 1887 to 1939; the second series is the current one. Abbr. S.E.; S.E.2d.

Southern Common Market See Mercosur.

Southern Reporter A set of regionallawbooks, part of the West Groups National Reporter System, containing every published appellate decision from Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and MiSSissippi, from 1887 to date. The first series ran from 1887 to 1941; the second series is the current one. - Abbr. So.; So.2d.

sovereign adj. (Of a state) characteristic of or endowed with supreme authority <sovereign nation> <sovereign immunity>.

sovereign 1. A person, body, or state vested with independent and supreme authority. 2. The ruler of an independent state. - Also spelled sovran. See SOVEREIGNTY.

sovereign immunity 1. A government's immunity from being sued in its own courts without its consent. Congress has waived most of the federal government's sovereign immunity. See FEDERAL TORT CLAIMS ACT. 2. A state's immunity from being sued in federal court by the state's own citizens. Also termed government immunity; governmental immunity.

sovereign equality The principle that nations have the right to enjoy territorial integrity and political independence, free from intervention by other nations. The United Nations "is based on the principle of the sovereign equality of all its Members." UN Charter art. 2, $ 1.

sovereign immunity See IMMUNITY (1).

sovereign people The political body consisting of the collective number of citizens and qualified electors who possess the powers of sovereignty and exercise them through their chosen representatives.

sovereign political power See POLITICAL POWER.

sovereign political power Power that is absolute and uncontrolled within its own sphere. Within its designated limits, its exercise and effective operation do not depend on, and are not subject to, the power of any other person and cannot be prevented or annulled by any other power recognized within the constitutional system. - Often shortened to sovereign power. - Also termed supreme power.

sovereign power 1. The power to make and enforce laws. 2. See sovereign political power under POLITICAL POWER.

sovereign right A unique right possessed by a state or its agencies that enables it to carry out its official functions for the public benefit, as distinguished from certain proprietary rights that it may possess like any other private person.

sovereign state See SOVEREIGN STATE.

sovereign state 1. A state that possesses an independent existence, being complete in itself, without being merely part of a larger whole to whose government it is subject. 2. A political community whose members are bound together by the tie of common subjection to some central authority, whose commands those members must obey. Also termed independent state. Cf. client state, nonsovereign state under STATE. "The essence of statehood is sovereignty. the principle that each nation answers only to its own domestic order and is not accountable to a larger international community, save only to the extent it has consented to do so. Sovereign states are thus conceived as hermetically sealed units, atoms that spin around an international orbit, sometimes colliding, sometimes cooperating, but always separate and apart." David j. Bederman, International Law Frameworks 50 (2001).

sovereignty (sahv-la- Jrin-tee). 1. Supreme dominion, authority, or rule.

sovran See SOVEREIGN.

SOW Abbr. STATEMENT OF WORK.

space arbitrage See ARBITRAGE.