Latin for Lawyers

L ATIN FOR L AWYERS

HABITUAL [L. habitare / to dwell or inhabit] An act or acts performed on a regular basis. In the nature of a compulsion. Frequent and recurring. Constant, repetitive. HABITUAL CRIMINAL One who commits successive crimes. Most states impose increasingly severe penalties for successive crimes. The most recent manifestation of this treat ment is “three strikes-you’re out” legislation, which imposes life sentences on criminals who have committed three successive felonies. The concept of fitting the punishment to the number of crimes committed is also contained in the federal sentencing guidelines. HAEC VERBA [L. hic, haec, hoc / this + verbum / word] In these very words. See IN HAEC VERBA HAEREDES PROXIMI Nearest or next of kin. The children or direct descendants of a decedent. HAEREDITAS An inheritance. HAEREDITAS DAMNOSA [L. haereditas + damnosus / harmful, ruinous] A regrettable or burdensome inheritance, one which carries more burdens than value; e.g., an inheritance which makes the beneficiary liable for the debts of the testator. See DAMNOSA HEREDITAS HAEREDITAS PATERNA A paternal inheritance. An inheritance which passes from father to child. HAERES NATUS [L. haerus (heres) / an heir + nascor, natus / born of] The natural heir of someone; entitled to inherit by descent. HEIR [L. haeres, heres ] One who succeeds to the interest in real or personal property of an intestate decedent. Under modern statutes, anyone who takes an interest in the real property left by a decedent who leaves no will. More broadly, anyone who

inherits any form of property from a decedent. HEREDITAMENT [L. hereditas / inheritance]

Anything which is capable of being inherited by one person from another, both real and personal. A corporeal hereditament is anything tangible; e.g., land, furniture, jewelry, personal effects. An incorporeal hereditament is any-

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