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Legal Terminologytaking See eminent domain. taking against the will A procedure under state law that gives a surviving spouse the right to demand a certain share (usually one-third to one-half) of the deceased spouse's property. The surviving spouse can take that share instead of accepting whatever he or she inherited through the deceased spouse's will. If the surviving spouse decides to take the statutory share, it's called taking against the will. Dower and curtesy is another name for the same legal process. tangible personal property Personal property that can be felt or touched. Examples include furniture, cars, jewelry and artwork. However, cash and checking accounts are not tangible personal property. The law is unsettled as to whether computer data is tangible personal property. Compare intangible property. tax basis See basis. temporary restraining order (TRO) An order that tells one person to stop harassing or harming another, issued after the aggrieved party appears before a judge. Once the TRO is issued, the court holds a second hearing where the other side can tell his story and the court can decide whether to make the TRO permanent by issuing an injunction. Although a TRO will often not stop an enraged spouse from acting violently, the police are more willing to intervene if the abused spouse has a TRO. tenancy by the entirety A special kind of property ownership that's only for married couples. Both spouses have the right to enjoy the entire property, and when one spouse dies, the surviving spouse gets title to the property (called a right of survivorship). It is similar to joint tenancy, but it is available in only about half the states. tenancy in common A way two or more people can own property together. Each can leave his or her interest upon death to beneficiaries of his choosing instead of to the other owners, as is required with joint tenancy. In some states, two people are presumed to own property as tenants in common unless they've agreed otherwise in writing. tenant Anyone, including a corporation, who rents real property, with or without a house or structure, from the owner (called the landlord). The tenant may also be called the lessee. tenants in common See tenancy in common. tender offer A public offer to purchase stock at a specified price per share, usually done to gain a controlling interest in a corporation. testamentary disposition Leaving property in a will. testamentary trust A trust created by a will, effective only upon the death of the willmaker. testate The circumstance of dying after making a valid will. A person who dies with a will is said to have died testate. Compare intestate. testator Someone who makes a will. testify To provide oral evidence under oath at a trial or at a deposition. third degree instruction See dynamite charge. TILA See Truth in Lending Act. title Evidence of ownership of real estate. title company A company that issues title insurance. title insurance Insurance issued by a title company that protects a property owner against loss if it is later discovered that title is imperfect. tort An injury to one person for which the person who caused the injury is legally responsible. A tort can be intentional -- for example, an angry punch in the nose -- but is far more likely to result from carelessness (called negligence), such as riding your bicycle on the sidewalk and colliding with a pedestrian. While the injury that forms the basis of a tort is usually physical, this is not a requirement -- libel, slander and the intentional infliction of mental distress are on a good-sized list of torts not based on a physical injury. tortious interference The causing of harm by disrupting something that belongs to someone else -- for example, interfering with a contractual relationship so that one party fails to deliver goods on time. Totten trust Another term for a payable-on-death bank account. toxic tort A personal injury caused by exposure to a toxic substance, such as asbestos or hazardous waste. Victims can sue for medical expenses, lost wages and pain and suffering. trade dress The distinctive packaging or design of a product that promotes the product and distinguishes it from other products in the marketplace -- for example, the shape of Frangelico liqueur bottles. Trade dress can be protected under trademark law if a showing can be made that the average consumer would likely be confused as to product origin if another product were allowed to appear in similar dress. trade name The official name of a business, the one it uses on its letterhead and bank account when not dealing with consumers. trade secret In most states, a formula, pattern, physical device, idea, process, compilation of information or other information that 1) provides a business with a competitive advantage, and 2) is treated in a way that can reasonably be expected to prevent the public or competitors from learning about it, absent improper acquisition or theft. trademark A word, phrase, logo, symbol, color, sound or smell used by a business to identify a product and distinguish it from those of its competitors. If the business uses the name or logo to identify a service, such as photo copying, it is called a service mark. In practice, the legal protections for trademarks and service marks are identical. trademark ownership In the United States, trademark ownership arising from first use of a mark. First use can be established by actual use or by application with the Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) for registration on an intent to use basis. If the same mark has been in use by different businesses in different parts of the country without causing customer confusion, the mark may be owned by both businesses in their respective regions. If the mark owners then come into conflict in another part of the country, ownership for the purpose of that region will be determined according to who was the first user and which business could most likely consider the region as a natural zone of expansion. trademark registration Federal registration of a mark with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) requires that the mark be used in commerce and the filing of a registration application. Once a mark is registered, the owner should always place the trademark registration symbol (®) or Reg. U.S. Pat. Off. next to the mark. Without this designation, it may be hard to collect damages from one who infringes the mark. trademark search An investigation to discover potential conflicts between a proposed trademark or service mark and any marks already in use in the marketplace. Preferably done before a proposed mark is used, a trademark search reduces the possibility of inadvertently infringing a mark belonging to another. Businesses can conduct trademark searches themselves, either manually in a Patent and Trademark Depository library, through a computer in one of the online trademark databases (for a fee) or by hiring a search firm to do the search for them. treble damages See damages. triple net lease See net lease. TRO See temporary restraining order. trust corpus Latin for the body of the trust. This term refers to all the property transferred to a trust. For example, if a trust is established (funded) with $250,000, that money is the corpus. Sometimes the trust corpus is known as the res, a Latin word meaning thing. trust deed The most common method of financing real estate purchases in California (most other states use mortgages). The trust deed transfers the title to the property to a trustee -- often a title company -- who holds it as security for a loan. When the loan is paid off, the title is transferred to the borrower. The trustee will not become involved in the arrangement unless the borrower defaults on the loan. At that point, the trustee can sell the property and pay the lender from the proceeds. trust merger Under a trust, the situation that occurs when the sole trustee and the sole beneficiary are the same person or institution. Then, there's no longer the separation between the trustee's legal ownership of trust property from the beneficiary's interest. The trust merges and ceases to exist. trustee The person who manages assets owned by a trust under the terms of the trust document. A trustee's purpose is to safeguard the trust and distribute trust income or principal as directed in the trust document. With a simple probate-avoidance living trust, the person who creates the trust is also the trustee. trustee powers The provisions in a trust document defining what the trustee may and may not do. trustor See grantor. Truth in Lending Act (TILA) A federal law that requires credit and charge card companies to disclose interest rates and other information about an account. It also requires lenders to disclose the terms of a loan, including the total amount of the loan, the annual interest rate and the number, amount and due dates of all payments necessary to repay the loan. The TILA requires additional disclosures and places many restrictions on mortgages.
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