Latin for Lawyers

SOCIAL SECURITY

SOCIAL SECURITY [L. socio, sociare / to unite or associate with ( socius / a partner or comrade) + securus / free from care, tranquil] The federal system for providing cash benefits to workers upon their retire ment or to their survivors upon death or disability. The system is funded by mandated contributions from employer and employee. Any system of insur ance designed to provide economic security to workers and their families. The federal system is administered by the Social Security Administration. SOCIETY [L. societas / partnership, companionship, affiliation] Any community of persons. The public in general. Any group of persons hav ing a common interest, history or purpose. Also, a specific group of persons organized for some common purpose, such as the SPCA. Also, those benefits of love and affection shared by persons with common emotional interests, e.g., the family as a whole, or husband and wife, or parent and child. In this sense, a loss of society forms the basis for compensation through damages. A husband, for example, may sue a third party for the loss of his wife's society when she is injured or killed by that party's negligence. SOCIUS CRIMINIS [L. socius (from sociare ) / joint, allied, acting together + crimen , criminis / a charge or accusation; crime, guilt] Partners in crime. A conspiracy to commit crime. The joining of persons to commit a crime. Joint defendants. Co-conspirators. SOLATIUM [L. solacium / consolation, comfort] Compensation for damage to one's emotions or feelings. Damages awarded in recognition of a victim's pain, suffering or injured feelings. SOLE [L. solus / alone, only] Not married. Solitary. Independent of help or interference; exclusive. Belong ing exclusively to one identified person or group. Sole custody is the custody of a child awarded exclusively to one person, usually a parent. A sole propri etorship is a business owned and conducted by one person, who is responsi ble for all its obligations. Sole and unconditional ownership is ownership of property by one person to the exclusion of all others. The sole actor doctrine imposes liability upon a corporation for the acts of an officer or agent who is the only representative of the company in a particular transaction, even when that officer or agent acts fraudulenty or against the interest of the corporation. SOLEMN, SOLEMNIZE [L. sollemnis / annual, recurring, periodic; solemn] Characterized by austerity, gravity and earnestness, as in a religious or offi cial ceremony. A celebratory occasion with a serious purpose, as in the administration of an oath of office. Awe-inspiring. To solemnize is to perform

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