clausula(klawz-ya-la), [Latin) A clause; a sentence or part of a sentence in a written instrument or statute. |
clausula codicillaris(klawz-ya-la kod-a-si-Iair-is). [Latin] Roman law. A codicillary clause; a codicil that, having been confirmed by a will (even in advance), operated as part of the will. An unconfirmed codicil created directives that could be effective even in the absence or failure of a will. See FIDEICOMMISSUM. |
clausula derogativa(klawz-ya-Ia da-rog-a-tI-va). [Latin] See DEROGATORY CLAUSE. |
clausula derogatoria(klawz-ya-Ia da-rog-a-tor-ee-a). See DEROGATORY CLAUSE. |
clausula rebus sic stantibus(klawz-ya-Ia ree-bas sik stan-ta-bas). See CLAUSA REBUS SIC STANTIBUS. |
clausula tenoris(klawz-ya-la te-nor-is). [Law Latin). The clause of tenure - that is, the clause in a charter describing the nature of a tenure. |
clausum(klawz-am). [Latin "close; closed"). 1. CLOSE (1). - Also termed clausum. 2. See close writ under WRIT. |
clausum fregit(klawz-am free-jit). [Latin "he broke the close"] See trespass quare clausum fregit under TRESPASS. |
clausura(klaw-zhuur-a). See CLAUSUM (1). |
clawback1. Money taken back. 2. The retrieval or recovery of tax allowailces by additional forms of taxation. claw back, vb. |
claw-back optionThe right to require repayment of funds earmarked for a specific purpose if the funds are disbursed for another purpose or in a manner inconsistent with the document governing the specified purpose. |
clayton actA federal statute enacted in 1914 to amend the Sherman Act - that prohibits price discrimination, tying arrangements, and exclUSive-dealing contracts, as well as mergers and interlocking directorates, if their effect might substantially lessen competition or create a monopoly in any line of commerce. IS USCA §§ 12 27. |
cleCONTINUING LEGAL EDUCATION. |
clean bill of ladingA bill of lading containing no clause or notation qualifying the bill's terms. Possible clauses or notations could include a provision for deck storage or a recording of cargo damage. Cf. unclean bill of lading. |
clean bill of lading-See BILL OF LADING. |
clean draftSee DRAFT. |
clean draft-A draft with no shipping documents attached. |
clean hillSee BILL (3). |
clean house1. To discharge a considerable number ofemployees, usu. in management, so that new employees may be brought in. 2. To sell securities not meeting an investor's requirements. |
clean letter of creditSee LETTER OF CREDIT. |
clean-hands doctrineThe principle that a party cannot seek equitable relief or assert an equitable defense if that party has violated an equitable principle, such as good faith . Such a party is described as having "unclean hands." For example, section 8 of the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act contains an unclean-hands provision that forbids a court from exercisingjurisdktion in a child-custody suit in certain situations, as when one party has wrongfully removed a child from another state, has improperly retained custody of a child after visitation, or has wrongfully removed a child from the person with custody. The clean-hands doctrine evolved from the discretionary nature of eqUitable relief in English courts of equity, such as Chancery. Also termed unclean hands doctrine. |
clean-slate ruleThe doctrine that the double-jeopardy prohibition does not apply to the retrial of a defendant who appealed and obtained a reversal of an earlier conviction. |
cleanup clauseIn a loan agreement, a clause that calls for the loan to be repaid in full within a given period, after which no further loans will be afforded to the debtor for a specified "cleanup" period. |
cleanup doctrineThe jurisdictional principle that once an equity court has acquired jurisdiction over a case, it may decide both equitable and legal issues as long as the legal issues are ancillary to the equitable ones. |
clear1. Free from encumbrances or claims. 2. Free from doubt; sure. 3. Unambiguous. |
clear-1. To acquit or exonerate <she was cleared of all wrongdoing>. 2. (Of a drawee bank) to pay (a check or draft) out of funds held on behalf of the maker <the bank cleared the employee's check>. 3. (Of a check or draft) to be paid by the drawee bank out of funds held on behalf of the maker <the check cleared yesterday>. 4. Maritime law. To settle (customs, harbor dues, etc.) and obtain official permission to leave the port. |
clear and convincing evidenceSee EVIDENCE. |
clear and convincing evidence-Evidence indicating that the thing to be proved is highly probable or reasonably certain. This is a greater burden than preponderance of the evidence, the standard applied in most civil trials, but less than evidence beyond a reasonable doubt, the norm for criminal trials. Also termed clear and convincing proof See REASONABLE DOUBT. Cf. PREPONDERANCE OF THE EVIDENCE. |
clear and convincing proofSee clear and convincing evidence under EVIDENCE. |
clear annual valueSee VALUE (2). |
clear daySee DAY. |
clear day-One of many full, consecutive days between (1) the date when a period, measured in days, begins and (2) the date when an event that ends the period occurs. For example, if a statute or contract requires a party to give another party five clear days of notice of a hearing, and the hearing is scheduled to be held on the 31st day of the month, the party giving notice must do so by the 25th day of the month so that five full (clear) days elapse between but not including the 25th and 31st. |
clear errorSee ERROR (2). |
clear market valueSee fair market value under VALUE (2). |
clear residueThe income deriving from funds used to pay a decedent's debts, administration expenses, and general legacies. Also termed true residue. |
clear titleSee TITLE (2). |
clear valueSee VALUE (2). |
clearance1. The right of a ship to leave port, or the certificate issued by the port collector evidencing the ship's right to leave port. 2. The time that must elapse between runs of the same movie within a particular area; a theater's exclusive right of exhibition over competing theaters. |
clearance cardA letter given by an employer to a departing employee, stating the duration and nature of the employment and the reasons for leaving. The clearance card is not necessarily a recommendation. |
clear-and-present-danger testConstitutional law. 'The doctrine allowing the government to restrict the First Amendment freedoms of speech and press if necessary to prevent immediate and severe danger to interests that the government may lawfully protect. This test was formulated by Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes in Schenck v. United States, 249 U.S. 47, 39 S.Ct. 247 (1919). - Also termed clear-and-present-danger doctrine. "The 'clear and present danger' doctrine is concerned with distinguishing protected advocacy from unprotected incitement of Violent or illegal conduct .... The conven· tional wisdom of the day was that speech was punishable as an attempt if the natural and reasonable tendency of what was said would be to bring about a forbidden effect. In addition, the criminal defendant must have used the words with an intent to bring about that effect, although such specific intent could be inferred from the tendency of the words on the presumption that one intends the consequences of one's speech. The formula announced by Justice Holmes easily fits within this framework. The question in every case is whether the words used are used in circumstances and are of such a nature as to create a clear and present danger that they will bring about the substantive evils that Congress has a right to prevent,''' laurence H. Tribe, American Constitutional Law 608 (1978) (quoting Schenck v. United States, 249 U.S. 47, 52. 39 S.Ct. 247,249 (1919"). |
clearfield trust doctrineThe doctrine describing the federal courts' power to make federal common law when there is both federal lawmaking power to do so and a strong federal interest in a nationally uniform rule. Clearfield Trust Co. v. United States, 318 U.S. 363, 63 S.Ct. 573 (1943). Cf. ERIE DOCTRINE. |
clearingThe exchanging of checks and balancing of accounts. 2. Maritime law. The departure of a ship from port, after complying with customs, health laws, and other local regulations. See CLEARANCE (1). |
clearing accountAn account (usu. a temporary one) containing amounts to be transferred to another account before the end of an accounting period. |
clearing agencySee clearing agent under AGENT (2). |
clearing agentSecurities.A person or company acting as an intermediary in a securities transaction or providing facilities for comparing data regarding securities transactions . The term includes a custodian of securities in connection with the central handling of securities.Securities Exchange Act § 3(a)(23)(A) (15 USCA § 78c(a)(23)(A". Also termed clearing agency. |
clearing agent-See AGENT (2). |
clearing agreementA contract designed to facilitate the collective settlement of monetary claims between creditors and debtors in different currency areas, without resort to foreign-exchange reserves. |
clearing corporationSee CORPORATION. |
clearing corporation-A corporation whose capital stock is held by or for a national security exchange or association registered under federal law such as the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. |
clearing loanSee LOAN. |
clearinghouse1. A place where banks exchange checks and drafts and settle their daily balances; an association of banks or other payors regularly clearing items. See UCC § 4-104(a)(4). 2. A stock-and-commodity exchange where the daily transactions of the brokers are cleared. 3. Any place for the exchange ofspecialized information. Also written clearing house . |
clearingsChecks or other items drawn on a local bank and presented for payment through a clearinghouse or directly to the drawee bank. See CLEARINGHOUSE (1). |
clearly-erroneous standardThe standard of review that an appellate court usu. applies in judging a trial court's treatment of factual issues . Under this standard, a judgment will be upheld unless the appellate court is left with the firm conviction that an error has been committed. |
clear-reflection-of-income standardAn income-accounting method that the IRS can force on a taxpayer if the method used does not clearly reflect income. IRC (26 USC A) § 446(b). |
clear-to-use searchSee INFRINGEMENT SEARCH. |
clear-view doctrineSee PLAIN-VIEW DOCTRINE. |
clemency(klem-an-see), Mercy or leniency; esp., the power of the President or a governor to pardon a criminal or commute a criminal sentence. Also termed executive clemency. See PARDON; COMMUTATION. clement (klem-cmt), adj. |
Clementines(klem-an-tinz or -tinz or -teenz). Eccles. law. A collection of decretals of Pope Clement V, published in 1317 by his successor, Pope John XXII, and forming the fourth of the six parts of the Corpus Juris Canonici, completed in 1502. Also termed Clementine Constitutions. |
clergy privilegeSee BENEFIT OF CLERGY (1). |
clergy, benefit ofSee BENEFIT OF CLERGY. |
clergyable1. (Of an offense) not triable if benefit of clergy is claimed. 2. (Of a person) eligible to claim benefit of clergy. |
clergyman-penitent privilegeSee priest-penitent privilege under PRIVILEGE (3). |
clergyman-penitent privilegeSee priest-penitent privilege. |
clerical errorSee ERROR (2). |
clerical error-An error resulting from a minor mistake or inadvertence, esp. in writing or copying something on the record, and not from judicial reasoning or determination. Among the boundless examples of clerical errors are omitting an appendix from a document; typing an incorrect number; mistranscribing a word; and failing to log a calL A court can correct a clerical error at any time, even after judgment has been entered. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 60(a); Fed. R. Crim. P. 36. Also termed scrivener's error; vitium clerici. See VITIUM SCRIPTORIS. |
clerical misprisionSee MISPRISION. |
clericale privilegium(kler-a-kay-Iee priv-a-lee-jee-am). [Law Latin "clerical privilege"] See BENEFIT OF CLERGY. |
clerici praenotarii(kler-a-sI pree-na-tair-ee-I). [Law Latin "prenotary clerks"] See SIX CLERKS. |
clerico convicto commisso gaolae in defectu ordinarii deliberando(kler-a-koh kan-vik-toh ka-mis-oh jay[a]-lee in di-fek-t[y]oo di-lib-a-ran-doh). [Law Latin "for delivering a cleric convicted and committed to gaol in defect of his ordinary"]. A writ ordering the delivery of a clerk to the ordinary (i.e., a superior) after the clerk was convicted of a felonv, and without the ordinary's questioning the clerk's right to claim benefit of clergy. Also termed de clerico convicto commisso gaolae in defectu ordinarii deliberando. See ORDINARY (1); BENEFIT OF CLERGY (1). |
clericus mercati(kler-a-kas mar-kay-tI). [Law LatinJ See CLERK OF THE MARKET. |
clerid de cancellaria(kler-a-sI dee kan-sa-Iair-ee-a). [Law Latin "clerks of the chancery"] Cursitors. Also termed clerici de cursu. See CURSITOR. |
clerk(bef. 12c). 1. A public official whose duties include keeping records or accounts. |
clerk-To work as a clerk <she clerked for a Chicago law firm last summer>. |
clerk of arraigns(a-raynz). A deputy of the clerk of assize responsible for arraigning defendants and putting the formal questions to the jurors as they deliver their verdict. The office was abolished in England in 1946. |
clerk of courtSee CLERK (2). |
clerk of enrollmentsThe former chief of the Enrollment Office, which the British Parliament abolished in 1879, reassigning its duties to the Central Office. See ENROLLMENT OFFICE; CENTRAL OFFICE. |
clerk of indictmentAn officer of England's Central Criminal Court, responsible for preparing indictments and assisting the Clerk of Arraigns. The office was abolished in 1946, when its duties were moved to the Central Office. See CENTRAL OFFICE. |
clerk of nichilsSee NICHIL. |
clerk of records and writsAn officer of the English Court of Chancery responsible for filing documents and sealing bills of complaint and writs of execution. The office was abolished in 1879, when its duties were moved to the Central Office. See CENTRAL OFFICE. |
clerk of the corporationSee SECRETARY (2). |
clerk of the crown in chanceryThe head of the permanent staff of the Crown Office in Chancery (of the Central Office), responsible for reading the title of Bills in the House of Lords, sending out writs of summons to peers, and issuing election writs. |
clerk of the house of commonsAn officer of the House of Commons who keeps the House journal, signs orders, indorses bills sent to the House of Lords, and has custody ofall records .The Clerk is appointed for life by the Crown. |
clerk of the market'The overseer of a public market, responsible for witnessing oral contracts, inquiring into weights and measures, measuring land, and settling disputes between people dealing there .The office has become obsolete as a result ofvarious statutes regulating weights and measures. |
clerk of the parliamentsThe principal permanent official of the House of Lords, responsible for the House's minutes and documents, and for advising the members on procedure. |
clerk of the peaceAn officer of the Quarter Sessions responsible for maintaining the courts' records, preparing indictments, entering judgments, issuing process, and other clerical and administrative functions .The office was abolished in England in 1971, when the Quarter Sessions' jurisdiction was transferred to the Crown Courts. See quarter session under SESSION (1). |
clerk of the pellsAn Exchequer officer who entered tellers' bills on the parchment rolls (pells), one for receipts and the other for disbursements. Also termed Master of the Pells. |
clerk of the pipeAn Exchequer officer responsible for the Pipe Rolls .The office was abolished in 1833. Also termed Engrosser of the Great Roll. See PIPE ROLLS. |
clerk of the privy seal(priv-ee seel). An officer responsible for preparing documents for the Lord Privy Seel. The use of the Privy Seal was abolished in 1884. See PRIVY SEAL. |
clerk of the signet(sig-nit). An officer who kept the privy signet and attended the sovereign's principal secretary.The signet was used to seal royal letters and other documents not requiring the Great Seal of the Realm. The office was abolished in England in 1851. See great seal (3) under SEAL; PRIVY SIGNET. |
clerk's recordSee RECORD (4). |
clerkship1. An internship in which a law student or recent law-school graduate assists a lawyer or judge with legal writing, research, and other tasks . In many common-law jurisdictions, recent law-school graduates are required to complete clerkships as a condition of admission to the bar. 2. A law student's employment as an attorney's apprentice before gaining admission to the bar. Until shortly before World War II, a person could be admitted to the bar in many states without attending law school merely by passing the bar exam. |
clf destinationA contractual term denoting that the price includes in a lump sum the cost of the goods and the insurance and freight to the named destination. Also termed ClF place of destination. |
click fraudSee FRAUD. |
click fraud-A scheme in which a person or robot repeatedly clicks on a merchant's pay-per-click advertisement on a website for purposes other than viewing the website or making a purchase. |
click-wrap agreementSee POINT-AND-CLICK AGREEMENT. |
click-wrap licenseSee POINT-AND-CLICK AGREEMENT. |
cliens(kli-enz), [Latin "client") Roman law. A dependent; a person who depended on another for defense in suits at law and other difficulties . A c/iens was often a freed slave or immigrant. PI. clientes (kh-en-teez). |
clientA person or entity that employs a professional for advice or help in that professional's line of work. cliental, adj. |
client controlThe influence that a lawyer has over his or her client, esp. in relation to positions taken, decisions made, and general conduct with other parties and their attorneys . Lawyers whose clients behave irrationally, as by acting vindictively or refusing even generous settlement offers, are said to have little or no client control. |
client s privilegeSee attorney-client privilege. |