See: elective share
[Last updated in July of 2024 by the Wex Definitions Team]
property law
will
A will is a legal document that states a testator’s wishes and instructions for managing and distributing their estate after death. In contrast, intestate succession is passing the property of the decedent according to the State’s intestacy...
will substitutes
Will substitutes are methods used instead of a will to transfer one’s property/assets upon their death. Will substitutes are different from regular wills because the title of the asset transfers to the death beneficiary at any point,...
words of procreation
Words of procreation are the language in a will or deed that indicates a transfer of property to one person and that person's descendants. Typically, the words are used as "to A and the heirs of his body," where A is the person who inherits...
work for hire
A work for hire, or work made for hire, refers to works whose ownership belongs to a third party rather than the creator. Under general copyright principals, a copyright becomes the property of the author who created the work. However, work...
work made for hire
A work made for hire, or work for hire, refers to works whose ownership belongs to a third party rather than the creator. For example, the employer is the author of the work completed and not the employee or actual creator of the work. When a...
writ of execution
A writ of execution is a court order that directs law enforcement personnel to seize non-exempt property owned by the defendant and sell it at public auction to satisfy a judgment won by the plaintiff. The defendant is also called a judgment...
writ of garnishment
A writ of garnishment is a court order that compels the seizure or attachment of a defendant's property, or that of a judgment debtor that is in the possession or control of the property. The person or entity in possession of the property is...
Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952)
Youngstown Sheet & Tube v. Sawyer, 342 U.S. 579 (1952) was a case in which the U.S. Supreme Court had to decide on the applicability of the President's national security powers on seizing private property. President Truman had ordered the...
zoning
Zoning is a legislative act dividing a jurisdiction's land into sections and regulating different land uses in each section in accordance with a zoning ordinance.
Flexibility in Zoning:A number of devices allow governing boards to include...