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Chapter 7 trustee A person appointed in a Chapter 7 case to represent the interests of the bankruptcy estate and the creditors. The trustee’s responsibilities include reviewing the debtor’s petition and schedules, liquidating the property of the estate, and making distributions to creditors.

DisclaimerAll content on this website, including dictionary, thesaurus, literature, geography, and other reference data is for informational purposes only. This information should not be considered complete, up to date, and is not intended to be used in place of a visit, consultation, or advice of a legal, medical, or any other professional. This site contains general legal information but does not constitute professional legal advice for your particular situation. The Law Dictionary is not a law firm, and this site does not create an attorney-client or legal adviser relationship. If you have specific questions, please consult a qualified attorney licensed in your jurisdiction. Ktsanes eventually sued the company and settled for $65,000. He did not report it on his taxes, and the IRS said it was taxable and sent him a tax bill.

A separate court of “equity” could order someone to do something or to cease to do something (e.g., injunction). In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in “law” cases but not in “equity” cases. Discharge A release of a debtor from personal liability for certain dischargeable debts. Read more about legal commentaries here. Notable exceptions to dischargeability are taxes and student loans. The discharge also prohibits creditors from communicating with the debtor regarding the debt, including through telephone calls, letters, and personal contact.

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Yet when retirement payments commence, the retirement payments are normally taxed. If you’re not sure how to outline your memo, jury instructions can help by explaining a cause of action, outlining the essential elements of a claim and providing relevant primary law all in one spot. For example, the entry for the legal term of art in Black’s Law Dictionary contains a definition and references two Supreme Court opinions. In other words, understanding a particular action requires applying the theory’s laws and deriving a solution. This isn’t just any law school, it’s the one that has more judges in more courtrooms than any other. Access to the complete content on Oxford Reference requires a subscription or purchase. Public users are able to search the site and view the abstracts and keywords for each book and chapter without a subscription.

Black’s Law Dictionary, Pocket Edition, 6th

The Plain Language Law Dictionary is a collection of over a thousand common legal terms defined in simple, everyday language. Under the terms of the licence agreement, an individual user may print out a PDF of a single entry from a reference work in OR for personal use . Focusing primarily on English law, it also provides a one-stop source of information for any of the many countries that base their legal system on English law. Now providing more information than ever before, this edition features recommended web links for many entries. For more than a century, Black’s Law Dictionary has been the gold standard for the language of law. Today, it’s the most widely cited law book in the world.

Bankruptcy judge A judicial officer of the United States district court who is the court official with decision-making power over federal bankruptcy cases. For the Tax Court, though, this was all about who paid the premiums for the insurance coverage. His employer paid them, and the premium payments were not deducted from his pay. In essence, then, this was extra money, not something he had paid for. He even tried arguing that the pay was really in the nature of physical injury or sickness payments, so could be excluded as that type of damages. However, what if you paid for your disability insurance yourself, with after-tax dollars?

Voluntary transfer A transfer of a debtor’s property with the debtor’s consent. Uphold The appellate court agrees with the lower court decision and allows it to stand. Unliquidated claim A claim for which a specific value has not been determined. Undersecured claim A debt secured by property that is worth less than the amount of the debt. Transfer Any mode or means by which a debtor disposes of or parts with his/her property. Subpoena A command, issued under a court’s authority, to a witness to appear and give testimony.

The law of the land the established law of a country. Be a law unto oneself to be inclined not to obey rules or follow the usual customs and conventions. The state or practice of settling in vacant or abandoned property, either for shelter or in an attempt to establish ownership. An expert on the codification and revision of Roman laws ordered by the 6th-century Byzantine emperor Justinian. An act or action having the character of a crime. A person who puts a particular interpretation on provisions of the U.S. Constitution, especially those provisions dealing with the rights of individuals and states.

The police want tougher laws for dealing with drug traffickers. We’re campaigning for a repeal of the abortion laws. The law forbids the sale of cigarettes to people under the age of 16. These people were known to be very quick to go to law. It was a detailed study of international human rights law. See, e.g., Glossary of legal terms at the New York Courts website. Distinctions are made among various types of law dictionaries.

In Shannon Fernandez’s case, her divorce was finalized in 2007. It awarded her with a percentage of her former husband’s retirement benefits. The disability retirement pay commenced when her husband became disabled. He received service-connected disability retirement benefits from 1993 until 2007. This dividing line may sound simple, and it can be. Yet there are many tax disputes over these kinds of issues. Then, when you combine several tax rules, the complexity gets worse.