Know the laws your rights
accumulation trust
A trust in which the income is retained and not paid out to beneficiaries until certain conditions are met. For example, if Uncle Pierre creates a trust for Nick’s benefit but stipulates that Nick will not get a penny until he get
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administrator
A person appointed by a probate court to handle the distribution of property of someone who has died without a will, or with a will that fails to name someone to carry out this task.
administrator ad litem A person appointed by a pro
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affirmative defense
An explanation for a defendant’s actions that excuses or justifies his behavior. For example, acting in self-defense is a common affirmative defense to a charge of battery or homicide. Other affirmative defenses include insanity,
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ancillary probate
A probate proceeding conducted in a different state from the one the deceased person resided in at the time of death. Usually, ancillary probate proceedings are necessary if the deceased person owned real estate in another state.
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attorney fees
The payment made to a lawyer for legal services. These fees may take several forms:
hourly
per job or service — for example, $350 to draft a will
contingency (the lawyer collects a percentage of any money she wins for her client
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bailiff
A court official usually classified as a peace officer (sometimes as a deputy sheriff, or marshal) and usually wearing a uniform. A bailiff’s main job is to maintain order in the courtroom. In addition, bailiffs often help court proceedings
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Berne Convention
An international treaty that standardizes basic copyright protection among all of the signatory countries, which currently number over 100. A member country will afford the same treatment to an author from another country as it does
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bulk sales law
A law that regulates the transfer of business assets so that business owners cannot dispose of assets in order to avoid creditors. If a business owner wants to conduct a bulk sale of business assets — that is, get rid of an unusually
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