A New Law Dictionary and Glossary

Fr. [from /aw, to do.] Doing. An emphatic word in old deeds. Briit. c. 39.

Fr. [from faire, to do.] A doer; an actor; the perpetrator of a crime. Les principals fesours; the principal actors. Britt. c. 6. Fesoura de teles voysaunce; the makers of such nui

[Sax. /«/«nmon,] In old English law. A surety or pledge; frankpledge. Cov>elL FESTING PENNY* [from Sax./«M/nian, to fasten.] In English law. Earnest given to servants when hired, o

Lat. A speedy remedy. A term applied by the statute of Westminster 2, (13 Edw. I.) c. 24, to the writ of assise, as compared with the more dilatory riimedies previously in use. 3 B

Lat. A feast. Tomlins,

Fr. (Literally, a matter to be known or understood.) The title of a small French tract, published at the end of Fleta. 2 Reeves' Hist. E. Law, 281. Selden's Diss. ad Flet. c. 1, se

Fieu, Fiew, L. Fr. Fire; a fireplace, or hearth. L, Fr, Diet, Kelham,

[L. Lat./«£rf Min, q. v.] In Scotch law. A free and gratuitous right to lands, made to one for service to be performed by him, according to the proper nature thereof. Scotch Diet,

Li Scotch law. The rent due under the tenure of feu-holding. Scotch Dkt

Feid. [L. Lat. faida, feida.] A combination of kindred to revenge injuries or affronts done or offered to any of their blood. Whishaw. See Faida, Deadly feud.

[L. Lat. feudum, feodum; Fr. fief, Scotch feu.] A stipendiary estate in land, held of a superior, by service. 1 Steph. Com. 161. — A right which a vassal had in land, or some other

Relating or belonging to, or having the quality of a fetuium, fief or fee. That which is held of another by service; the opposite of c Ulodial, See Allodial,

[Lat. Lex Feudalis; Jus Feudorum,] The law of feuds, or feudal estates. That peculiar system of law by which the creation, enjoyment and transmission of feudal estates were regulat

The system of feuds or fiefs; that is, estates in land held of a superior by the tenure of service. A system of tenure, the origin of which is generally traced to the peculiar poli

See Feodatorg, FEUDORUM LIBRI (or CONSUE-

Lat. [from Sax. feok, a stipend.] A fief, fee or feud, as it is sometimes translated. Feudum est jus inprmdio alienoin perpetuum utendi fruetidi; quod pro beneficio dofninus dat ea

In Scotch law. That kind of tenure by which the vassal or tenant is obliged to pay to the superior a sum of money yearly, or to make a return in grain in place of military services

In Scotch law. He thi^t has the fee or feu. The proprietor is termed ^r, in co Dtradisti Dctioa to the life renter. 1 Karnes' JSquity, Pref.

Lat. [from fingere, to feign.] A fiction. See Fiction of law.

[L&t.Jictio juris;] A legal assumption that a thing is true, which is either not true, or which is as probably false as true. Be WsDict. Brooms Max, 54 — An assumption of a possibl

Lat. [from fidei-commissum, q. v.] In the civil law. A person who had a beneficial interest in an estate which, for a time, was committed to the faith or trust of another. Harris'

Lat. (jil.fidei eommissa.) Id the civil law. A thing committed to one's faith. A trust, or bequest in trust; the disposal by will of an inheritance to a person, in confidence that

Lat. In the civil law. To order a thing upon one's faith; to pledge one's self; to become surety for another. Fide-jvbes ? Fide-juheo; Do yqji pledge yourself ? I do pledge myself.

Lat. In the civil law. A contract in which a person bound himself, as a surety or accessory, for another, by the way of stipulation, without discharging the obligation of the princ

Lat. [from fide-jubere, q. v.] In the civil law. A surety for another; a guarantor; one who binds himself for another who makes a promise, {pro €0 qui promittit obligatus.) Inst. 3

Lat. [pi. fideles; from fides, fmih; L. Fr. feal, foialL] In olJ European law. Faithful; trusty. Fideles in Christo; the faithful in Christ, or Christia;is. Spelman, voc. Fideles.

Lat. [from fide Hs, q. v.] In old English law. Fealty; fidelity. Spelman, voc. Fidelis. 1 BL Com. 367. See Fealty. Used in the plural, fidelitates. Beg. Orig. 317 b.

Lat. [Fr. foi, foy.] Faith; fidelity; allegiance. Fidem ferre, portare; to bear faith. Words in the old oaths of fealty. Spelman. Ad fidem utriusque regis; owing allegiance to each

[from Lat. fiducia, confidence.] Relating to, founded upon, or having the quality of a trust or confidence. Founded upon a special or technical trust, as distinguished from an impl

Fr. [from Sax. feoh; L. Lat. feudum^ In feudal law. An estate in land held of a superior by service. The same with the English yv«, and Scotch /eu. See Feudum, Fee. — An estate in

Fr. [L. Lat. feudum hauberticum.] In Norman feudal law. A fief or fee held by the tenure of knight-service; a knight's fee. 2 Bl. Com. 62. Mirr. c. 2, § 27. Spelman, voc. Feodum.

Fr. In old English law. The holder of a fief or fee; a feeholder or freeholder. Touts les fieftenants dans le hundred sont obliges de viner, per le servage de lour fiefs; all the f

Ancient Gothic courts of an inferior jurisdiction, so called because four were instituted within every inferior district or hundred. 3 Bl, Com. 34. Stiemhook de Jur, Goth. lib. 1,

Lat. To be made; to be done. See In fieri. Fieri ■•M dwthtf Ideb Mlt,] •ed fmrntrnwrn valet. It ought not to be done, but [if] done, it is valid. Skep. Touch. 6. 6 Co. 39. T. Rayw;

Lat. (You cause to be made.) In practice. A writ of execution, (usually termed for brevity,^. /a. /) commanding the officer to whom it is directed that he cause to be made of the p

Lat. (I have caused to be made.) In practice. The name given to the return made by a sheriff or other officer to a writ of fieri facias, where he has collected the whole, or a part

[L. Lat. decimm quintal; Fr. quimienieT] In English law. A species of tax upon personal property, formerly imposed upon cities, townships and boroughs in England, that is, not upon

Sax. In old English law. A mulct or fine imposed on a person for making a fight or quarrel, {mulcta ob commissam pugnam,) to the disturbance of the peace. Spelman, CowelL

Filazer, Filizer. [L. Lat. filizarius, filazarius; from Fr. file, filace, (Lat. filum,) a thread.] An officer of the court of common pleas in England, so called, because he filed t

Lat. [from Fr. fil.] A file. Spelman. See File.

Fr. A file. Fnfilace; on file. Kelham, Philas occurs in Britton. Remue de philas; removed from the file. Britt. c. 48.

Lat. In old English practice. To file. Tovms, PL 67.

In old English law. A word used by Bracton to denote a kind of compotation or entertainment, given by bailiffs of hundreds, for the purpose of extorting money from those who attend

[L. Lat. filum, filacium.] In practice. A thread, string or wire, upon which writs and other exhibits in courts and offices, were formerly fastened, or filed for the more safe keep

[L. Lat. filiatio, from filius, a child.] The fact which creates the relation of parent and child. Hubback's Evid. of Success. 235. The adjudging of a bastard to be the child of a

Lat. [from filix, fern.] In old English law. A ferny or bracky ground; a place where fern grows. Co. Litt. 4 b. Shep. Touch. 96.

Lat. A son; a child. Praesumitur quis esse filius, eo quod nascitur ex uxore; one is presumed to be another's child, because he is born of his wife. Bract. fol. 6, 88. Filius est n

Lat. In the civil law. The son of a family; an unemancipated son. Inst. 2. 12. pr. Id, 4. 5. 2. Story's Conflict of Laws, § 61.

Lat. In old English law. The eldest legitimate son of a woman, who previously had an illegitimate son by his father. Glanv. lib. 7^ 0.1. Otherwise called mu Zier. 2Bl.Com. 248. See

Lat. The son or child of nobody. Filius populi; a child of the people. Terms applied to a bastard. 1 BI Com. 469. 6 Co, 66 a. Fortescue de L. L, AnglicB, c. 40.

Fr. Sons. Defined by the Civil Code of Louisiana to include daughters. Le mot fils comprend lesfilles. Art. 3522, num. 1.

Lat. [L. Fr. >i;,^/tf, qq. v.] In old practice. A thread, string or wire used for passing through and connecting papers together; a file. Otherwise called Jilacium, {Fr. filace, qq

Lat. The thread or middle line of a road. An imaginary line dfawn through the middle oi a road, and constituting the boundary between the owners of the land on each side. 2 Smith's

[L. Lat. finalis, from finis, an end.] That which terminates or ends a matter or proceeding, not absolutely, however; as the final judgment of an inferior court, which admits of an

In equity practice. A decree which finally decides and disposes of the whole merits of a cause; reserving no further questions or directions for the future judgment of the court, s

Lat. [horn finis, an end or limit.] In old English law. Thai which makes an end or termination; final. Finalis concordia, (q. v.); a final concord or agreement. That which constitu

Lat. In old conveyancing. A final concord; a fine of lands. Talis coneordia finalis dieitur, eo quod finem imponit negotio, odea tH neutra pars litigantium ah eo de ccetero poterit

In practice. A judgment which puts an end to an action at law, by declaring that the plaintiff either has, or has not entitled himself to recover the remedy he sues for. 3 Bl, Com.

In practice. Writ* of execution in an action at law. So termed as concluding the proceedings, in contradistinction to m>esne process, (q. v.)

Distinguished from a definitive sentence. Marshall, C. J», 1 Cranch's R. 103. The last decree of an inferior court is Jinal in relation to the power of that court, but not in relat

In practice. The result of a judicial examination or inquiry; the fiftateraent to a court of such result. This term is most commonly applied to the making up and delivery, by a jur

[L. Fr. ^, feyn; from Lat. fims, an end.] In English law. A sum of money or price {pretium) paid for obtaining a benefit, favor or privilege; as the ancient fines for obtaining a w

In feudal law. A sum of money paid to the lord by a tenant, whenever he had occasion to aliene, or make over his land to another; a sum paid for license to alien the land. One of t

Fr. [fine, from Fr. fin, crafty or subtle; or artificial or exact.] In old English law. An absolute necessity or constraint, not avoidable. When a man was constrained to do that wh

Lat In old English practice. To make an end, or settlement; to iftake or pay a fine. Finem fecit n Mscum; he made a fine with us. Reg. Grig. 232. Bract fol. 164. To levy a fine. Br

[L. Fr. fynjeyn; L. Lat. finis, finalis coneordia^ In conveyancing. A species of conveyance or assurance by matter of record, formerly in extensive use in England, in the form of a

Fr. In old English law. The king's fines. Fines formerly payable to the king for any contempt or offence, as where one committed any trespass, or falsely denied his own deed, or di

Lat. [(rom finis, a fine.] In old English law. To fine, or pay a fine. Hoveden, 783, cited in CowelL To end or finish a matter.

Lat. In old English law and practice. An end or termination. Finis unius diei est principium alterius; the end of one day is the beginning of the next. 2 Bulst. 305. Finis rei atte

Lat. [from//iw, an end.] In old records. An ending or finishing; death, as the end of life; {quia vitafinitur morte.) CowelL Holthouse.

In the civil law. Action for regulating boundaries. The name of an action which lay between those who had lands bordering on each other, (qui confines agros habent,) to settle disp

Ferdfare, Herd/are. Sax. [from^rrf, an expedition or military service, and fare, a going.] In old Eaglish law. A summoning forth to a military expedition, (indictio ad profectionem

Sax. [from fird, military service, and socne, liberty.] In old English law. Exemption from military service. Spelman.

Ferdwite. Sax. [from fird, military service, and wite, a mulct or fine.] In old English law. A fine for refusing military service, (mulcta detrectantis militiam.) Spelman. A fine i

Letters of. In old Scotch law. Letters issued from the privy council in Scotland, addressed to the sheriff of the county, authorizing him to call for the assistance of the county t

Sax. In old records. A beacon, or high tower by the sea side, wherein were lights, either to direct sailors in the night, or to give warning of an enemy. CowelL Ordinal, temp, Edw,

Sax. [from /r^, and fco/i?, an allowance.] An allowance of sufficient wood for fuel, for the use of a tenant for life or yeare. 2 Bl, Com, 36. 2 Crabh's Real Prop. 76, § 1044. Spel

A contract of insurance by which the underwriter, in consideration of the premium, undertakes to indemnify the insured against all losses in his houses, buildings, furniture, ships

In Saxon and di English law. The ordeal or trial by red^ hot iron; which was performed either by taking up in the hand a piece of red-hot iron, of one, two or three pounds weight,

A contract of insurance, by which, in consideration of a single or periodical payment of premium, (as the case may be,) the company engages to pay to the assured such loss as may o

Lat. [from Sax. feorme, fearmcy provisions.] In old English law. A firm, ferm, or farm; a rent reserved on letting lands; {reditus qui in elocandis preediis domino elocanti reserva

Lat. In old English law. A farm or lease of a fee; a fee farm. See Feodi Jirma.

LaL [from j Jr«»a, a lease, or term.] In old records. Firming (farming,) or holding to firm, (farm.) The firmary's or farmer's right to the lands and tenements let to him ad firmam

Fermarium. L. Lat. [from Jirma, provisions.] In old records. A place in monasteries, and elsewhere, wheire the poor were received and supplied with food. Spelman. Hence the word in

Lat. [from Jtrma, a term.] In old English law. A lessee for a term; one having a term, ferm or farm in lands. Stat. Marlhr. c. 24. Bract. fol. 12 b, 44 b, 166 b, 178, 226 b. 2 £1.

Lat. In the forest law. Doe season. Cowell. Firmior et potentior est operatio legis quam dispositio hominis. The operation of the law is firmer and more powerful [or efficacious] t

Lat. [from firmus, firm, sure.] In old European law. An assurance; a deed or charter confirmed by witnesses or seal, for assuring some privilege. Spelman. Capitular. lib. 4, c. 37.

[L. Lat. primitiae.] In English ecclesiastical law. The first year's whole profits of every benefice or spiritual living in England, anciently paid by the incumbent to the pope, an

The first acquirer (perquisitor,) of an estate. He who first acquired an estate to his family, or first brought an estate into the family which at present owns it, whether the same

[from Lat. fiscus, q. v.] The treasury or property of a prince or state. Hence confiscate, (q. v.)

[L. Lat. judex fiscalis.] An officer named in the laws of the barbarous nations of Europe; the same with the grafio, graf, greve, or reeve. Spelman, voc. Grafio. Called fiscal, bec

Lat. In the Komim law. The treasury of the prince or emperor, as distinguished from cerarium, which was the treasury of the state. Spelman. Plin. Pan, 36. Tacit. AnnaL vi. 2. Calv,

[L. Lat. piscaria.] A right or liberty of taking fish; a species of incorporeal hereditament, anciently termed piscary, of which there are several kinds. 2 Bl. Com. 34, 39. 3 Kent'

[Lat. pitcis regalia.'] Whale and sturgeon; so called in English law, as belonging to the king by prerogative, when thrown ashore or caught near the coast. A branch of the king's o

In Scotch law. The right of the crown to the moveable estate of a person pronounced rebel. Wharton's Lex.

Festuca. L. Lat. In old English law. A staff or wand, by the delivery of which the property in land or other thing was formerly transferred. Called also baculus, virga and fus Hs,

Fr. [from Lat. fugere.] In old English law. To fly or flee; to chase or drive. Kel Jiam. L. Fr, Diet, Flight. Fuer en fait; flight in fact, was when a man did apparently and corpor

A thing fixed to the freehold. Archl>. Landl. dk Ten. 859.— Any thing annexed to, (that is, fastened to, or connected with) the freehold. 2 Smith's Lead, Cos. 114. — An article of

Duty of the. The ceremony of striking the flag and lowering the topsail of a vessel to the British flag, formerly practised as a solemn acknowledgment of British sovereignty over t

Lat. [from /ef^rran*, burning.] In the heat, excitement, or actual commission of an act. Flagrante de- 63 licto-'-'maleficio-'^crimine; in the heat of the offence, in the very act.