This word has had various meanings at different stages of history. In the Roman law, it denoted one who was either born free or emancipated and was the opposite of “slave.” In feudal law, it designated an allodial proprietor, as distinguished from a vassal or feudal tenant. (And so in Pennsylvania colonial law. Fry’s Election Case,71 Pa. 308, 10 Am. Rep. 098.) In old English law, the word described a freeholder or tenant by free services; one who was not a villein. In modern legal phraseology, it is the appellation of a member of a city or borough having the right of suffrage, or a member of any municipal corporation invested with full civic rights. A person in the possession and enjoyment of all the civil and political rights accorded to the people under a free government.
THE 10 MAXIMS OF COMMERCIAL LAW 1. A workman is worthy of his hire. 2. All are equal under the law. 3. In commerce, truth is sovereign. 4. Truth is expressed in the form of an affidavit. 5. An unrebutted affidavit stands as truth in commerce. 6. An unrebutted affidavit becomes judgment in commerce. 7. A matter must be expressed to be resolved. 8. He who leaves the field of battle first loses by default. 9. Sacrifice is the measure of credibility. 10. A lien or claim can be satisfied only through (a) rebuttal by counter affidavit point by point; (b) resolution by a jury; or (c) payment or performance of the claim.
THE 10 MAXIMS OF COMMERCIAL LAW 1. A workman is worthy of his hire. 2. All are equal under the law. 3. In commerce, truth is sovereign. 4. Truth is expressed in the form of an affidavit. 5. An unrebutted affidavit stands as truth in commerce. 6. An unrebutted affidavit becomes judgment in commerce. 7. A matter must be expressed to be resolved. 8. He who leaves the field of battle first loses by default. 9. Sacrifice is the measure of credibility. 10. A lien or claim can be satisfied only through (a) rebuttal by counter affidavit point by point; (b) resolution by a jury; or (c) payment or performance of the claim.
Black’s Law Dictionary, Pocket Edition is the top-selling paperback law dictionary for good reason. With more than 19,000 definitions from the industry-standard Black’s Law Dictionary 10th, it is an essential reference tool for legal terms in a compact format.
Black’s Law Dictionary, Pocket Edition is the top-selling paperback law dictionary for good reason. With more than 19,000 definitions from the industry-standard Black’s Law Dictionary 10th, it is an essential reference tool for legal terms in a compact format.