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R




rainmaker

A lawyer who drums up a lot of business for a law firm by bringing in clients.





reading on

In patent law, describing literally. A patent is infringed if the patent's claims read on all elements of the infringing device.





reaffirmation

An agreement that a debtor and a creditor enter into after a debtor has filed for bankruptcy, in which the debtor agrees to repay all or part of an existing debt after the bankruptcy case is over. For instance, a debtor might make a reaffirmation agreement with the holder of a car note that the debtor can keep the car and must continue to pay the debt after bankruptcy.





real estate

Land and the property permanently attached to it, such as buildings, houses, stationary mobile homes, fences and trees. In legalese, real estate is also called real property.





real estate agent

A foot soldier of the real estate business who shows houses and does most of the other nitty-gritty tasks associated with selling real estate. An agent must have a state license and be supervised by a real estate broker. Most agents are completely dependent upon commissions from sellers for their income, so it pays to find out which side the agent represents (buyer, seller or both) before you place too much trust in the agent's opinion.





real estate broker

A real estate professional one step up from a real estate agent. A broker has more training and can supervise agents, but its still worth examining his or her loyalties.





real property

Another term for real estate. It includes land and things permanently attached to the land, such as trees, buildings, and stationary mobile homes. Anything that is not real property is termed personal property.





recording

The process of filing a copy of a deed or other document concerning real estate with the land records office for the county in which the land is located. Recording creates a public record of changes in ownership of all property in the state.





recusal

A situation in which a judge or prosecutor is removed or steps down from a case. This often happens when the judge or prosecutor has a conflict of interest -- for example, a prior relationship with one of the parties.





red herring

A legal or factual issue that is irrelevant to the case at hand.





redaction

The act of going over a document with a fine-toothed comb in order to find any ambiguities or areas that are not to your advantage.





redemption

In Chapter 7 bankruptcy, when the debtor obtains legal title to collateral for a debt by paying the creditor the replacement value of the collateral in a lump sum. For example, a debtor may redeem a car note by paying the lender the amount a retail vendor would charge for the car, considering its age and condition.





reformation

The act of changing a written contract when one of the parties can prove that the actual agreement was different than what's written down. The changes are usually made by a court when both parties overlooked a mistake in the document, or when one party has deceived the other.





refugee

In the context of U.S. immigration law, people who have been allowed to live in the United States indefinitely to protect them from persecution in their home countries. Refugees get their status before coming to the U.S., while asylum seekers obtain their status after arrival. Refugees may eventually get green cards.





remainderman

Someone who will inherit property in the future. For instance, if someone dies and leaves his home "to Alma for life, and then to Barry", Barry is a remainderman because he will inherit the home in the future, after Alma dies.





removal

A legal proceeding, commonly known as "deportation", that is conducted before a special immigration judge to decide whether or not an immigrant will be allowed to enter or remain in the country. While, generally speaking, a person who is already in the U.S. cannot be expelled without first going through a removal hearing, someone arriving at the border or a port of entry can be forced to leave without a hearing or ever seeing a judge. Those who are deported are barred from returning to the United States for at least five years unless the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) grants a special waiver.





rent control

Laws that limit the amount of rent landlords may charge, and that state when and by how much the rent can be raised. Most rent control laws also require a landlord to provide a good reason, such as repeatedly late rent, for evicting a tenant. Rent control exists in some cities and counties in California, Maryland, New Jersey, New York and Washington, D.C.





replacement value

What it would cost to buy a particular item from a retail vendor, considering its age and condition -- for instance, to buy a car from a used car dealer, furniture from a used furniture shop,or electronic equipment on eBay.





replevin

A type of legal action where the owner of movable goods is given the right to recover them from someone who shouldn’t have them. Replevin is often used in disputes between buyers and sellers -- for example a seller might bring a replevin action to reclaim goods from a buyer who failed to pay for them.





repossession

A creditor's taking property that has been pledged as collateral for a loan. Lenders will most often repossess cars when the owner has missed loan payments and has not attempted to work with the lender to resolve the problem. A repossessor can't use force to get at your car, but he can legally hot-wire it and even drive it out of your unlocked garage.





request for admission

A discovery procedure, authorized by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and the court rules of many states, in which one party asks an opposing party to admit that certain facts are true. If the opponent admits the facts or fails to respond in a timely manner, the facts will be deemed true for purposes of trial. A request for admission is called a "request to admit" in many states.





request to admit

See request for admission.





res ipsa loquitur

A Latin term meaning "the thing speaks for itself." Res ipsa loquitur is a legal doctrine or rule of evidence that creates a presumption that a defendant acted negligently simply because a harmful accident occurred. The presumption arises only if (1) the thing that caused the accident was under the defendant's control, (2) the accident could happen only as a result of a careless act and, (3) the plaintiff's behavior did not contribute to the accident. Lawyers often refer to this doctrine as "res ips" or "res ipsa."





res nova

Latin for "a new thing", used by courts to describe an issue of law or case that has not previously been decided.





residuary beneficiary

A person who receives any property by a will or trust that is not specifically left to another designated beneficiary. For example, if Antonio makes a will leaving his home to Edwina and the remainder of his property to Elmo, then Elmo is the residuary beneficiary.







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