Rebut

In pleading and evidence. To rebut is to defeat or take away the effect of something. Thus, when a plaintiff in an action produces evidence which raises a presumption of the defendant's liability, and the defendant adduces evidence which shows that the presumption is ill-founded, he is said to "rebut it." Sweet. In the old law of real property, to rebut was to repel or bar a claim. Thus, when a person was sued for land which had been warranted to him by the plaintiff or hla ancestor, and he pleaded the warranty as a defense to the action, this was called a "rebutter." Co. Litt 365a; Termes de 1a Ley.

— Rebut an equity. To defeat an apparent equitable right or claim, by the introduction of evidence showing that, in the particular circumstances, there is no ground for such equity to attach, or that it is overridden by a superior or countervailing equity. See 2 Whart. Ev. § 973.