Law Dictionary
	Search:

condition'al obligation See OBLIGATION.

conditional pardon A pardon that does not become effective until the wrongdoer satisfies a prerequisite or that will be revoked upon the occurrence of some specified act.

conditional pardon See PARDON.

conditional payment See PAYMENT.

conditional payment Payment of an obligation only on condition that something be done. Generally, the payor reserves the right to demand the payment back if the condition is not met.

conditional plea A plea of guilty or nolo contendere entered with the court s approval and the government s consent, the defendant reserving the right to appeal any adverse determinations on one or more pretrial motions. - If an appeal is successful, the plea is withdrawn and a new one entered. Fed. R. Crim. P. 1l(a)(2).

conditional plea See PLEA (1).

conditional presumption e rebuttable presumption.

conditional presumption See rebuttable presumption under PRESUMPTION.

conditional privilege See qualified privilege under PRIVILEGE (1).

conditional privilege See qualified privilege.

conditional promise A promise that is conditioned on the occurrence of an event other than the lapse of time <she made a conditional promise to sell the gold on April 2 unless the price fell below $300 an ounce before that time. A conditional promise is not illusory as long as the condition is not entirely within the promisor s control.

conditional promise See PROMISE.

conditional proof A fact that amounts to proof as long as there is no other fact amounting to disproof. Also termed presumptive proal

conditional proof See PROOF.

conditional purpose 1. An intention to do something, conditions permitting. 2. Criminal law. A possible defense against a crime if the conditions make committing the crime impossible (e.g., "I will steal the money if it's there," and the money is not there).

conditional release See RELEASE.

conditional release 1. A discharge from an obligation based on some condition, the failure of which defeats the release. 2. An early discharge of a prison inmate, who is then subject to the rules and regulations of parole.

conditional revocation See DEPENDENT RELATIVE REVOCATION.

conditional right See RIGHT.

conditional right A right that depends on an uncertain event; a right that mayor may not exist. For example, parents have the conditional right to punish their child, the condition being that the punishment must be reasonable.

conditional sale 1. A sale in which the buyer gains immediate possession but the seller retains title until the buyer performs a condition, esp. payment of the full purchase price. See retail installment contract under CONTRACT. 2. A sale accompanied by an agreement to resell upon specified terms. Cf. absolute sale.

conditional sale See SALE.

conditional sales contract See retail installment contract under CONTRACT.

conditional sales contract- See retail installment contract.

conditional sentence A sentence of confinement if the convicted criminal fails to perform the conditions of probation.

conditional sentence See SENTENCE.

conditional use See USE (1).

conditional will See WILL

conditional zoning See ZONING.

conditionally privileged communication A defamatory statement made in good faith by a person with an interest in a subject to someone who also has an interest in the subject, as an employer giving a negative but accurate job review ofa former employee to a potential future employer. The privilege may be lost upon a showing of malice or bad faith.

conditionally privileged communication- See COMMUNICATION.

conditional-use permit See SPECIAL-USE PERMIT.

conditioning the market See GUN-JUMPING.

conditions of sale The terms under which an auction will be conducted . The conditions of sale are usu. placed in the auction room for public viewing before the sale.

condominia (kon-da-min-ee-a). Coownerships or limited ownerships . Condominia are considered part of the dominium of the property, and thus are more than mere rights in the property (i.e., jure in re aliena); examples of condominia include emphyteusis, superficies, pignus, hypotheca, usufructus, usus, and habitatio.

condominium (kon-da-min-ee-am). 1. Ownership in common with others. 2. A Single real-estate unit in a multi-unit development in which a person has both separate ownership of a unit and a common interest, along with the development's other owners, in the common areas. Cf. COOPERATIVE (2). PI. (for sense 2) condominiums. [Cases: Condominium "The condominium concept is not new, despite its relatively recent introduction in the United States. Ownership of individual units in buildings can be traced back to ancient Babylon; it was quite common in ancient Rome and in medieval Europe. The earliest condominium statute is Article 664 of the Code Napoleon of 1804, a very brief provision which was later substantially expanded. Condominium statutes were adopted in most nations in Europe, and in Central and South America, before any were adopted in the United States." Roger A, Cunningham et al.. The Law of Property § 2.2, at 34 n.26 (2d ed. 1993). 3. Joint sovereignty by two or more nations. 4. A politi cally dependent territory under such sovereignty. PI. condominia (senses 3 & 4).

condonation (kon-da-nay-shan), 1. A victim's express or (esp.) implied forgiveness of an offense, esp. by treating the offender as ifthere had been no offense. Condonation is not usu. a valid defense to a crime. 2. One spouse's express or implied forgiveness of a marital offense by resuming marital life and sexual intimacy. For example, one spouse might impliedly forgive the other spouse's infidelity by continuing to live with him or her. Ifadultery is charged as a ground for divorce and condonation is proved, the forgiving spouse is barred from proofofthat offense. Cf. COLLUSION (2); CONNIVANCE (2); RECRIMINATION (1); RECONCILIATION.

condone (kan-dohn), To voluntarily pardon or overlook (esp. an act of adultery). condonable (kan-dohn-a-bal), adj.

conducere aliquid faciendum (kan-d[y]oo-sa-ree al-i-kwid fay-shee-en-dam). [Latin] Roman law. To bind oneself to perform work for pay. Cf. LOCARE ALIQUID FACIENDUM.

conducere aliquid utendum (kan-d[y]oo-sa-ree al-i-kwid yoo-ten-dam). [Latin] Roman law. To pay for the use of an object; to hire. Cf. LOCARE ALIQUID UTENDUM.

conduct Personal behavior, whether by action or inaction; the manner in which a person behaves . Conduct does not include the actor's natural death or a death that results from behavior consciously engaged in but not reasonably expected to have this result. conduct, vb. "The word 'conduct' ... covers both acts and omissions.... In cases in which a man is able to show that his conduct, whether in the form of action or of inaction, was invol· untary, he must not be held liable for any harmful result produced by it ...." j.W. Cecil Turner, Kenny's Outlines of Criminal Law 13 n.2, 24 (16th ed. 1952).

conduct money See witness fee under FEE (1).

conductio (kan-dak-shee-oh), [Latin "a hiring"] Roman law. The hiring or leaSing of services or property. PI. conductiones (kan-dak-shee-oh-neez). See locatio conductio under LOCATIO.

conductor (kan-dak-tar-or-tor), [Latin "one who hires"] Roman law. 1. A lessee or a person who hires the services of another; a hirer. 2. A person hired to make a specific work; a contractor. A contractor, esp. for the provision of public services, was also called manceps or redemptor. See MANCEPS; LOCATOR (1).

conductor operarum (kan-dak-tar [or -tor] op-a-rair-am). [Latin "a hirer oflabor"] Roman law. A person who hires another's labor, esp. manual labor, at a stated price; an employer.

conductus (kan-dak-tas), [fr. Latin conducere "to hire"] Roman law. A person or thing hired by a conductor. conduit taxation. See pass-through taxation under TAXATION.

confarreatio (kan-far-ee-ay-shee-oh), [Latin] Roman law. A religious ceremony used to wed members of the Patrician class in ancient Rome. - By this ceremony, the wife was brought into the husband's family and placed under the husband's protection (manus). See MANUS (1). Cf. COEMPTIO; USUS (3). PI. confarreationes (kan far-ee-ay-shee-oh-neez). "Anciently, there were three modes in which marriage might be contracted according to Roman usage, one involv· ing a religious solemnity, the other two the observance of certain secular formalities. By the religious marriage of Confarreation; by the higher form of civil marriage, which was called Coemption; and by the lower form, which was termed Usus, the Husband acquired a number of rights over the person and property of his wife, which were on the whole in excess of such as are conferred on him in any system of modern jurisprudence. But in what capacity did he acquire them? Not as Husband, but as Father. By the Confarreation, Coemption, and Usus, the woman passed in manum viri, that is, in law she became the Daughter of her husband. She was included in his Patria Potestas .... These three ancient forms of marriage fell, however, gradually into disuse, so that, at the most splendid period of Roman greatness, they had almost entirely given place to a fashion of wedlock - old apparently, but not hitherto considered reputable - which was founded on a modification of the lower form of civil marriage." Henry S. Maine, Ancient Law 149 (10th ed. 1884). "Confarreatio was a religious ceremony performed in the house of the bridegroom, to which the bride had been conveyed in the state, in the presence of at least ten witnesses and the Pontifex Maximus, or one of the higher priests. A set form of words (carmen verba concepta) was repeated, and a sacred cake made of Far {faryeus panis}.

confectio (kan-fek-shee-oh), [Latin "a completing"]. The act of making or executing a written instrument. PI. confectiones (kan-fek-shee-oh-neez).

confederacy 1. A league of states or countries that have joined for mutual support or joint action; an alliance. 2. An association of two or more persons, usu. for unlawful purposes; CONSPIRACY. 3. The fact or condition of being allied or'associated.

confederacy clause A clause in a complaint charging that the defendant or defendants have combined with others (who may yet be named as defendants) to defraud or deprive the plaintiff of personal rights.

confederate An ally; esp., a coconspirator or accomplice.

confederation 1. A league or union of states or nations, each of which retains its sovereignty but also delegates some rights and powers to a central authority. The United States, for example, was first organized under the Articles of Confederation. Cf. FEDERATION. "A confederation is a union, more or less complete, of two or more states which before were independent. It ai ms to secure a common good, external, as mutual protection against powerful neighbors, or internal, as commerce and community of justice by means of common institutions." Theodore D. Woolsey, Introduction to the Study of International Law § 108, at 173 (5th ed. 1878),

confederation of states A confederation involving a central government that exists and exercises certain powers but does not control all the external relations of the member states . For international purposes there exists not one but a number of states. Cf. federal state under STATE, 2. An alliance; esp., in a negative sense, a conspiracy.

conferee (kon-far-ee). See MANAGER (2).

conference 1. CONVENTION (3). 2. A meeting between the two houses of a bicameral legislature. See conference committee under COMMITTEE. "It is proper for either house to request a conference with the other on any matter of difference or dispute between them, When a conference is requested, the subject of the conference should always be stated, One house may request a conference to inquire or protest concerning an offense or default on the part of a member or officer of the other house. When there is a question concerning procedure, or when an unparliamentary message has been sent. instead of replying directly, a conference should be requested. When there are questions as to procedure between the two houses, the proper procedure is to discuss the matter by a conference committee; also, where one house desires to formally present a question to the other, the question should be submitted through a conference committee." National Conference of State Legislatures, Mason's Manual of Legislative Procedure § 764, at 551 (2000).

conference committee A joint meeting of two legislative committees, one from each house of a bicameral legislature, usu. charged with adjusting differences in a bill passed by both houses in different versions. Also termed committee on conference. See CONFERENCE (2). "A committee on conference from each of the two houses meeting together is not a joint committee but a joint meeting of two committees. The quorum of a committee on conference is a majority of the members of each com· mittee. In voting in a conference committee, the committee of each house votes separately. The committee on conference from each house submits its report to the house from which it was appointed. The report, upon being received, may be treated like other reports, except that the report of a conference committee is usually given a higher precedence. Under no condition, including suspension of the rules, may the house alter or amend the report of the committee, but must adopt or refuse to adopt the report in the form submitted." National Conference of State Legislatures, Mason's Manual of Legislative Procedure § 770, at 558-59 (2000).

conference committee- See COMMITTEE.

conference of chief justices An organization consisting of the highest judicial officers of all the states in the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the territories of American Samoa, Guam, and the Virgin Islands . Established in 1949, the organization seeks to improve the administration of justice in various ways, as by supporting adequate judicial funding, promoting the independence and effectiveness of state judicial systems, and advancing professionalism and lawyer competence. Since 1983, the organization has operated as a nonprofit corporation. - Abbr. CCJ.

confess To admit (an allegation) as true; to make a confession. confessor, n.

confessed judgment See CONFESSION OF JUDGMENT.

confessing error A plea admitting to an assignment of error. See ASSIGNMENT OF ERROR.

confessio in judicio (kan-fesh-ee-oh in joo-dish-ee-oh). [Latin "confession in court"]. An in-court confession.

confession A criminal suspect's oral or written acknowledgment of guilt, often including details about the crime. Cf. ADMISSION; STATEMENT (3). "A confession is an acknowledgment in express words, by the accused in a criminal case, of the truth of the main fact charged or of some essential part of it." 3 John H. Wigmore, Evidence in Trials at Common Law § 821, at 308 Uames H. Chadbourn ed., 4th rev, ed, 1970). 'The distinction between admissions in criminal cases and confessions by the accused is the distinction in effect between admissions of fact from which the guilt of the accused may be inferred by the jury and the express admission of guilt itself." William p, Richardson, The Law of Evidence § 394, at 268 (3d ed, 1928).

confession of judgment See CONFESSION OF JUDGMENT.

confession and avoidance A plea in which a defendant admits allegations but pleads additional facts that deprive the admitted facts of an adverse legal effect. For example, a plea of contributory negligence (before the advent of comparative negligence) was a confession and avoidance. Also termed avoidance; plea in confession and avoidance; plea ofconfession and avoidance. Cf. affirmative defense under DEFENSE (1).

confession of judgment 1. A person's agreeing to the entry of judgment upon the occurrence or nonoccurrence of an event, such as making a payment. 2. A .judgment taken against a debtor by the creditor, based on the debtor's written consent. 3. The paper on which the person so agrees, before it is entered. Also termed confessed judgment; cognovit judgment; statement of confession; warrant ofconfession; judgment by confession. See COGNOVIT. Cf. WARRANT OF ATTORNEY.

confidence 1. Assured expectation; firm trust; faith <the partner has confidence in the associate's work>. 2. Reliance on another's discretion; a relation of trust <she took her coworker into her confidence>. 3. A communication made in trust and not intended for public disclosure; specif., a communication protected by the attorney-client or similar privilege <the confidences between lawyer and client>. Under the ABA Code of Professional Responsibility, a lawyer cannot reveal a client's confidence unless the client consents after full disclosure. DR 4-101. Cf. SECRET (2). confide, vb.

confidence game A means of obtaining money or property whereby a person intentionally misrepresents facts to gain the victim's trust so that the victim will transfer money or property to the person. Also termed con game; con. Cf. BUNCO.

confidence man One who defrauds a victim by first gaining the victim's confidence and then, through trickery, obtaining money or property; a swindler . The equivalent term confidence woman is exceptionally rare, even though women are often involved in confidence games. Often shortened to con man. See CONFIDENCE GAME. Cf. BUNCO-STEERER.

confidential 1. (Of information) meant to be kept secret <confidential settlement terms>. 2. (Of a relationship) characterized by trust and a willingness to confide in the other <a confidential relationship between attorney and client>.

confidential adoption See closed adoption under ADOPTION.

confidential communication A communication made within a certain protected relationship and legally protected from compelled disclosure in a legal proceeding. - Among confidential communications are those between husband and wife, attorney and client, and priest and penitent. See PRIVILEGE (3).

confidential communication- See COMMUNICATION.

confidential marriage See MARRIAGE (1).

confidential relationship See RELATIONSHIP.

confidential relationship 1. See fidUciary relationship. 2. Trade secrets. A relationship in which one person has a duty to the other not to disclose proprietary information. A confidential relationship can be expressly established, as by the terms of an employment contract. It can also be implied when one person knows or should know that the information is confidential, and the other person reasonably believes that the first person has consented to keep the information confidential. A confidential relationship might be implied, for instance, between two people negotiating the sale of a business.

confidential source A person who provides information to a law-enforcement agency or to a journalist on the express or implied guarantee of anonymity. Confidentiality is protected both under the Federal Freedom of lnformation Act (for disclosures to law enforcement) and under the First Amendment (for disclosures to journalists).

confidentiality 1. The state of having the dissemination of certain information restricted. 2. 1he relation between lawyer and client or guardian and ward, or between spouses, with regard to the trust that is placed in the one by the other.

confidentiality agreement A promise not to disclose trade secrets or other proprietary information learned in the course of the parties' relationship. Confidentiality agreements are often required as a condition of employment. Also termed nondisclosure agreement.

confidentiality clause A clause prohibiting the parties to an agreement from disclosing to nonparties the terms of the agreement and, often, anything related to the formation of the agreement. Also termed nondisclosure clause; no-talk provision.

confidentiality clause- See CLAL'SE.

confidentiality statute A law that seals adoption records and prevents an adopted chi ld from learning the identity of his or her biological parent and prevents the biological parent from learning the identity of the adoptive parents. Also termed sealed-record statute.

confinee A person held in confinement.

confinement The act of imprisoning or restraining someone; the state of being imprisoned or restrained <solitary confinement>. See SOLITARY CONFINEMENT. confine, vb.

confirm 1. To give formal approval to <confirm the bankruptcy plan>. 2. To verify or corroborate <confirm that the order was signed>. 3. To make firm or certain <the judgment confirmed the plaintiff's right to possession>.

confirmatio (kon-far-may-shee-oh). [Latin "confirmation"]. A confirmation of a voidable estate. See CONFIRMATION (3).

confirmatio ad omissa vel male appretiata (kon-far-may-shee-oh ad oh-mis-a vel mal-ee a-pree-shee-ay-ta). [Law Latin]. Confirmation (by an executor) of subjects omitted or wrongly valued in a previously provided inventory.

confirmatio chartarum (kon-far-may-shee-oh kahr-tair-am). [Latin "confirmation of the charters").A declaration first made by Henry III in ] 225 confirming the guarantees of Magna Carta and the Charter of the Forest. It was not enrolled until 1297, when, during the reign of Edward I, it was enacted, thus introducing these charters into the common law. Also spelled Confirmatio Cartarum. "For lawyers, the really important date is neither 1215 nor 1225, when Henry's Charter took its final form, but 1297, when Edward I, in his Inspeximus, confirmed the Charter of 1225 and the Forest Charter, which was issued at the same time (Confirmatio Chartarum). The important element in the Confirmatio is the statement that the Charter might be pleaded in every royal court, either to support a claim or a defense. The Charter becomes in this way part of the law the Common Law which, in 1297, was already a definite concept although it was not yet quite the equivalent of the law of England. Until then, the political aspects of the Charter had been much the more important." Max Radin, Handbook ofAnglo·American Legal History 156 (1936).

confirmatio crescens (kon-far-may-shee-oh kres-enz). [Latin "growing confirmation"]. A confirmation that enlarges an estate.

confirmatio diminuens (kon-far-may-shee-oh di-min-yoo-enz). [Latin "diminishing confirmation"]. A confirmation that decreases the services that a tenant must perform.

confirmatio perficiens (kon-far-may-shee-oh par-fish-ee-enz). [Latin "perfecting confirmation"]. A confirmation that ratifies a wrongful and defeasible title, or makes a conditional estate absolute.

confirmatio perficiens- See CONFIRMATIO.

confirmation 1. The act of giving formal approval <Senate confirmation hearings>. 2. The act of verifying or cor roborating; a statement that verifies or corroborates <the journalist sought confirmation of the district attorney's remarks>. 3. The act of ratifying a voidable estate; a type of conveyance in which a voidable estate is made certain or a particular estate is increased <deed of confirmation>. 4. A declaration that corrects a null provision of an obli gation in order to make the provision enforceable. 5. Commercial law. A bank's agreement to honor a letter of credit issued by another bank. Cf. RATIFICATION. confirmatory (kan-far-ma-tor-ee), adj.

confirmation of sale A court's approval - usu. in the form of a docket entry or order-of the terms of a court-ordered sale.

confirmation slip The form verifying a purchase or sale of a security, usu. mailed by the broker to the investor. Also termed transaction slip; sold note.

confirmavi (kon-far-may-vI). [Latin]. I have confirmed. The emphatic word in a deed of confirmation. See CONFlRMATION (3).

confirmed letter of credit See LETTER OF CREDIT.

confirmee (kon-far-mee). The grantee of a deed of confirmation. See CONFIRMATION (3).

confirmor (kan-far-mar or -mor). The grantor of a deed of confirmation. See CONFlRMATION (3).