Definitions from Case Law

a sales tax which by its terms must be passed on to the purchaser imposes the legal incidence of the tax upon the purchaser

the 'legal' nature of an issue is determined by considering, first, the pre-merger custom with reference to such questions; second, the remedy sought; and, third, the practical abi

not a future diversion, but one now being exercised under a legal right, and that under this statute a legal abstractor may take what he was diverting in 1907, and, if that did not

any writ, order, summons, or other similar process in the nature of garnishment.

the statute required the filing and publishing of tariffs specifying the rates adopted by the carrier, and made these the legal rates; that is, those which must be charged to all s

In determining what is a legal remedy and its adequacy to defeat their equity jurisdiction, the federal courts are guided by the historic distinction between law and equity in thos

This formula, 'or his legal representatives,' embrace representatives of the original grantee in the land, by contract, such as assignees or grantees, as well as by operation of la

The principle is without application unless the right invaded is a legal right,—one of property, one arising out of contract, one protected against tortious invasion, or one founde

The legal title must rest upon entry, survey, registry and patent; and it will be admitted that a legal title cannot be in any one until a patent has been issued; and further, that

a vote recorded on a ballot that clearly reflects what the voter intended.

the characterization of that state-created claim as legal or equitable for purposes of whether a right to jury trial is indicated must be made by recourse to federal law

In Virginia, the moneys arising from the sale of personal property are called legal assets, in the hands of an executor or administrator; and those which arise from the sale of rea

Services rendered under the requirements of law or of contract, for which a compensation is fixed, constitute a legal demand. Services rendered under an authority which is casual,

such a wrong as is specified in section 10(e).

initiatives are plainly 'legislation' within the meaning of these Regulations. Had the measures involved in these cases been passed by the people of Washington and Arkansas they wo

The mere enactment of legislation which authorizes condemnation of property cannot be a taking. Such legislation may be repealed or modified, or appropriations may fail.

Legislation is presumptively territorial and confined to limits over which the law-making power has jurisdiction.

The oft-repeated statement that administrative construction receives legislative approval by reenactment of a statutory provision, without material change, covers the situation whe

If the legislature shares the now prevailing belief as to what is public policy, and finds that a particular instrument of trade war is being used against that policy in certain ca

The legislature is not debarred from classifying according to general considerations and with regard to prevailing conditions; otherwise, there could be no legislative power to cla

If there could be any doubt as to the meaning of the statute, it disappears in the light of congressional construction which may properly be examined as an aid in its interpretatio

The legislative contempt power should be limited to 'the least possible power adequate to the end proposed

a bank, in which stock is held by individuals, is a private corporation, and its charter is a legislative contract, which cannot be changed without its consent

the legislature of a state may, in the absence of special restrictions in its Constitution, make a valid contract with a corporation in respect to taxation, and that such contract

The Court of Claims is a legislative, not a constitutional court. Its judicial power is derived not from the Judiciary Article of the Constitution, article 3, but from the Congress

Those created by Congress in the exertion of other powers are called legislative courts. Their functions always are directed to the execution of one or more of such powers, and are

The courts are the legislative courts of the Territory, created in virtue of the clause which authorizes Congress to make all needful rules and regulations respecting the Territori

By dedicating the lands thus acquired to a particular public use, Congress declared a public policy, but did not purport to deprive itself of the power to change that policy by dev

where a legislature enacts a specific rule for fixing a rate of taxation, by which rule the rate is mathematically deduced from facts and events occurring within the year and creat

The expectations of those who sought the enactment of legislation may not be used for the purpose of affixing to legislation when enacted a meaning which it does not express.

The essentials of the legislative function are the determination of the legislative policy and its formulation as a rule of conduct. Those essentials are preserved when Congress sp

Whether and to what extent deductions shall be allowed depends upon legislative grace; and only as there is clear provision therefor can any particular deduction be allowed.

Grants made by a Legislature are not warranties; and the rule universally applied in determining their effect is, that if the thing granted was not in the grantor at the time of th

If the legislature possessed the authority to make such a grant and confirmation, it is very clear to our minds that it vested an indefeasible and irrevocable title. We have no kno

It is the purpose and office of the doctrine of legislative immunity, having its roots as it does in the Speech or Debate Clause of the Constitution, that legislators engaged 'in t

We are not required to be sure of the precise reasons for [the legislature's] exercise [of power], or be convinced of the wisdom of its exercise. ... the constitutional validity of

Legislative power, as distinguished from executive power, is the authority to make laws, but not to enforce them or appoint the agents charged with the duty of such enforcement. Th

It is the duty and function of the legislature to discern and correct evils, and by evils we do not mean some definite injury, but obstacles to a greater public welfare.

That a legislative presumption of one fact from evidence of another may not constitute a denial of due process of law or a denial of the equal protection of the law it is only esse

A member of the general assembly is, undoubtedly, privileged from arrest, summons, citation, or other civil process, during his attendance on the public business confided to him. A

the necessity and expediency of the taking of property for public use 'are legislative questions, no matter who may be charged with their decision, and a hearing thereon is not ess

ratification by the legislature is in all respects equivalent to original authority, and cures all defects of power, if such defects existed, and all irregularities in its executio

the legislative approval of existing regulations by reenactment of the statutory provision to which they appertain gives such regulations the force of law

In establishing a rule of general application, it is not a condition of its validity that there be adduced evidence of its appropriateness in respect to every railroad to which it

the people") is so outrageously wrong, so utterly devoid of textual or historic support, so flatly in contradiction of prior Supreme Court cases, so obviously the willful product o

the State's lawmaking body of elected representatives, acting independently of restrictions imposed by state law.

being exactly as proposed: neither spurious nor false," which does not describe respondents' claims in this case.

[U]nless the employer who refuses to reinstate strikers can show that his action was due to 'legitimate and substantial business justifications,' he is guilty of an unfair labor pr

all" uses of drugs unrelated to "addiction and recreational abuse." "Ante," at 274.

the full effect of §6 [of the Clayton Act] is that a group of farmers acting together as a single entity in an association cannot be restrained 'from lawfully carrying out the legi

It is certainly true, that length of time is no bar to a trust clearly established; and in a case where fraud is imputed and proved, length of time ought not, upon principles of et

When Congress leaves to the Judiciary the task of imputing to Congress an undeclared will, the ambiguity should be resolved in favor of lenity. It may fairly be said to be a presup

of protecting the State's interest: greater reliance on the summary disenrollment procedures of § 332 of the State's election law and loyalty oaths, restrictive party affiliation r

even though the governmental purpose be legitimate and substantial, that purpose cannot be pursued by means that broadly stifle fundamental personal liberties when the end can be m

That a lessee will not be allowed to deny the title of his lessor, is admitted; but it is not admitted that a contract executed for the purpose of conveying and acquiring an estate

the lesser offense must be included within but not, on the facts of the case, be completely encompassed by the greater. A lesser-included offense instruction is only proper where t

does not, by itself, render the search unreasonable.

The law as to leases is not a matter of logic in vacuo; it is a matter of history that has not forgotten Lord Coke. Massachusetts has followed the English tradition and we believe

the lessor, after entry, has not the absolute discretion to relet or not to relet the premises, but ... it is his duty to 'prevent unnecessary loss or diminution of rent in consequ

The right which the lessor has over the products of the estate, and on the movables which are found on the place leased, for his rent, is of a higher nature than mere privilege. Th

a letter of attorney may, at any time, be revoked by the party who makes it; and is revoked by his death. But this general rule, which results from the nature of the act, has susta

The present is intended as a letter of credit in favour of my regarded friends, Messrs. J. and T. Robson, to the amount of forty or fifty thousand dollars, which sum they may wish

Letters of administration are a trust. They are granted by the probate court or ordinary because of confidence reposed in the grantee. They require him to take exclusive charge of

The appointment of an executor vests the whole personal estate in the person so appointed. He holds as trustee for the purposes of the will, but he holds the legal title in all the

to make a valid levy on goods and chattels on a writ of fi. fa., if the officer charged with the duty has a view of them, and they are in his power, and he declares that he makes a

Inlisting, or procuring any person to be enlisted, in the service of the enemy, is clearly an act of treason.

The purchaser takes the same interest in the property which the judgment debtor would have upon a final adjustment of all the accounts of the partnership. It is not only an undivid

they must be relieved from every species of levy, sale, and forfeiture—from a levy and sale for taxes, as well as the ordinary judicial levy and sale

Proceedings in courts of justice are usually determined by the lex fori of the place where the suit is pending, including the statutes of limitations, which are those of the countr

We have an analogous case in the thirty-fourth section of the Judiciary Act of the United States; in which it is enacted that the laws of the several states shall be rules of decis

The validity of the contract is determined by the law of the place where it is entered into. Whether void or valid there, it is so everywhere.

The general principle adopted by civilized nations is, that the nature, validity and interpretation of contracts, are to be governed by the law of the country where the contracts a

The general principle in relation to contracts made in one place to be executed in another, is well settled. They are to be governed by the law of the place of performance—and if t

the settled principle that, in the absence of some overriding domestic policy translated into law, the right to recover for a tort depends upon and is measured by the law of the pl

The solution most commonly accepted as to torts in our municipal and in international law is to apply the law of the place where the acts giving rise to the liability occurred, the

the mere taking of foreign security does not alter the locality of the contract with regard to the legal interest. Taking foreign security does not necessarily draw after it the co

It is one to be determined by the lex loci rei sitae. It is to be considered solely in the light of the statutes and adjudications of North Carolina. This court must hold and admin

The law requires of no man that which is unreasonable or impracticable. Lex neminem cogit ad vana seu impossibilia.

the lex situs, the law of the place where the property is kept and used

It is essentially a species of liability without fault, analogous to other well known instances in our law. Derived from and shaped to meet the hazards which performing the service

the liability of a surety is not to be extended, by implication, beyond the terms of his contract; that his undertaking is to receive a strict interpretation; and not to extend bey

The cases cited to show that the judgment must be for the whole sum, if the verdict find any assets, have been overruled... the law is now well understood to be, that the executor

Carriers are liable to employees in damages whenever the failure to obey these Safety Appliance Laws is the proximate cause of injury to them when engaged in the discharge of duty.

It is a general principle of our law that there is no individual liability for an act which ordinary human care and foresight could not guard against. It is also a general principl

On that subject, we are of opinion, that in no case can it be necessary to state in a libel, any fact which constitutes the defence of the Claimant, or a ground of exception of the

There would be much force in this argument, if the term 'information' were exclusively applicable to a proceeding at common law. But the court is of opinion that it has no such exc

It is a process of the nature of a libel in rem; and does not, in any degree, touch the person of the offender.

where a treaty fairly admits of two constructions, one restricting the rights that may be claimed under it and the other enlarging them, the more liberal construction is to be pref

Even where a provision of a treaty fairly admits of two constructions, one restricting, the other enlarging rights which may be claimed under it, the more liberal interpretation is

At the very least, the proviso's language must mean that the kidnapped person shall not be suffering from injuries when liberated.

something more than freedom from physical restraint or imprisonment.

Liberty of circulating is as essential to that freedom as liberty of publishing; indeed, without the circulation, the publication would be of little value.

Such liberty and right embrace the right to make contracts for the purchase of the labor of others, and equally the right to make contracts for the sale of one's own labor; each ri

The fundamental theory of liberty upon which all governments in this Union repose excludes any general power of the state to standardize its children by forcing them to accept inst

the right "to direct the upbringing and education of children under their control." We explained in " Pierce "that "[t]he child is not the mere creature of the State; those who nur

principally although not exclusively, immunity from previous restraints or (from) censorship

The liberty referred to in that Amendment is the liberty of natural, not artificial, persons. Nor, in any true, constitutional sense, does the Missouri statute deprive life insuran

permission, or authority; and a license to do any particular thing, is a permission or authority to do that thing; and if granted by a person having power to grant it, transfers to

it is an essential ingredient of the offense that the products have been stored for interstate or foreign commerce, or in a place subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Unite

a person who holds a license authorizing the practice of social work, which includes social services to individuals, groups or communities in any one or more of the fields of socia