Latin for Lawyers

MERGER

MERGER [L. mergere / to dip, to plunge into a liquid, to immerse] To cause to combine. The incorporation of one thing into another. In contract law, the absorption of one contract into another. In corporate law, the amal gamation of two corporations, only one of which survives. In criminal law, the absorption of a lesser offense into a more serious offense which involves essentially the same elements. In property law, the swallowing of a lesser estate by a larger one; e.g., a leasehold merges into a fee simple. MERIT [L. mereo, merere / to deserve, earn] Deserving recognition or reward. To be worthy of recompense. In a legal sense, the intrinsic value of a party’s case or argument. The merits of a case are the essential issues to be determined. Also, the merit system is the system utilized by federal and state governments to insure that civil service employ ees are hired and earn advancement on the basis of ability only. MERITORIOUS [L. mereo, merere / to deserve] Entitled to respect and honor. Regarded favorably. Valid, as a meritorious claim or defense. MIGRATE [L. migro, migrare / to go from one place to another] To move from one country or state to another. The movement of a people or society from one place to another, as the migration of eskimo herders from the Arctic into Central Canada. See EMIGRATE, IMMIGRATE MILITIA [L. milito, militare / to serve as a soldier, to engage in war] A group of soldiers expressly trained by a government to serve in times of civil emergency. Also, a citizen force organized to serve a nation or state in times of natural disaster. A unit of soldiers ready to respond and serve not in battle against an enemy but to control the public. The word has now been usurped by self-proclaimed guardians of public morals who challenge estab lished and lawful authority. MINIMUM [L. parvis, minor, minimus / the least, the smallest] The smallest quantity or measure needed to satisfy some requirement. Mini mum contacts represent the lowest threshhold for establishing personal juris diction over a defendant in a civil action. A minimum sentence is the least severe sentence a judge may impose under a statute or code setting forth the range of punishments for crime. The mimimum wage is the lowest hourly wage an employer is permitted to pay its employees under federal statutes regulating interstate commerce. Most states also have minimum wage laws.

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