Impediments

Legal hindrances to making contracts. Some of these impediments are minority, want of reason, coverture, and the like. See Contract; Incapacity. In Civil Law. Bars to marriage. Absolute impediments are those which prevent the person subject to them from marrying at all, without either the nullity of marriage or its being punishable. Dirimant impediments are those which render a marriage void: as, where one of the contracting parties is already married to another person. Prohibitive impediments are those which do not render the marriage null, but subject the parties to a punishment. Relative impediments are those which regard only certain persons with regard to each other: as, the marriage of a brother to a sister. See Impedimento. IMPENSAE (Lat). In Civil Law. Expense; outlay. Divided into necessariae, for necessity, utiles, for use, and voluptuariae, for luxury; Dig. 79.

6. 14; Voc. Jur.