Legal Dictionary of Pakistan
Quick lookup for English, Urdu, and Latin legal terms used in Pakistani jurisprudence.
Constructive
adj. Legally imputed; having an effect in law though not necessarily in fact. Courts usu. give something a constructive effect for equitable reasons <the court held that the shift supervisor had constructive knowledge of the machine's failure even though he did not actually know until two days later>. See LEGAL FICTION. Cf. ACTUAL.
Constructive assent
assent imputed to someone based on conduct.
Constructive authority
authority that is inferred because of an earlier grant of authority.
Constructive bailment
A bailment that arises when the law imposes an obligation on a possessor of personal property to return the property to its rightful owner, as with an involuntary bailment.
constructive adverse possession
adverse possession in which the claim arises from the claimant's payment of taxes under color of right rather than by actual possession of the land. adverse title see title (2).
constructive assent
See ASSENT.
constructive authority
See AUTHORITY (1).
constructive bailment
See BAILMENT.
constructive breach
See anticipatory breach under BREACH OF CONTRACT.
constructive breaking into a house
A breaking made out by construction of law, as when a burglar gains entry by threat or fraud.
constructive condition
A condition contained in an essential contractual term that, though omitted by the parties from their agreement, a court has supplied as being rea-sonable in the circumstances; a condition imposed by law to do justice. ( The cooperation of the parties to a contract, for example, is a constructive condition. - Also termed implied-in-law condition; condition implied by law; condition implied in law"[C]onstructive conditions are imposed by law to do justice .... The dividing line between an express condition . . . and constructive conditions is often quite indistinct. Yet, the distinction is often of crucial importance. The general rule governing an express condition is that it must be strictly performed. The general rule as to constructive conditions is that substantial compliance is sufficient." John D. Calamari & Joseph M. Perillo, The Law of Contracts § 11.8, at 402 (4th ed. 1998).
constructive contempt
Contempt that is committed outside of court, as when a party disobeys a court order. - Also termed consequential contempt; indirect contempt.
constructive contract
See implied-in-law contract.
constructive conversion
See CONVERSION (2).
constructive custody
Custody of a person (such as a parolee or probationer) whose freedom is controlled by legal authority but who is not under direct physical control.
constructive delivery
An act that amounts to a transfer of title by operation of law when actual transfer is impractical or impossible. 0 For example, the delivery of a deposit-box key by someone who is ill and immobile amounts to a constructive delivery of the box's contents even though the box may be miles away. For the three traditional types of constructive delivery, see ATTORNMENT; CONSTITUTUM POSSESSORIUM; TRADITIO BREVI MANU.
constructive desertion
One spouse's misconduct that forces the other spouse to leave the marital abode.
constructive discharge
A termination of employment brought about by making the employee's working conditions so intolerable that the employee feels compelled to leave."Most constructive discharges fall into one of two basic fact patterns. First, the employer can cause a constructive discharge by breaching the employee's contract of employment in some manner short of termination. Second, the employer can make working conditions so intol-erable that the employee feels compelled to quit." Mark A. Rothstein et al., Employment Law § 9.7, at 539 (1994).
constructive dividend
See DIVIDEND
constructive escape
A prisoner's obtaining more liberty than the law allows, while not fully regaining freedom. 3. At common law, a criminal offense committed by a peace officer who allows a prisoner to depart unlawfully from legal custody. - Also termed voluntary escape. - escape, ub.
constructive eviction
See EVICTION
constructive force
Threats and intimidation to gain control or prevent resistance;. esp., threatening words or gestures directed against a robbery victim.
constructive force.
See FORCE.
constructive fraud
1. Unintentional deception or misrepresentation that causes injury to another. - Also termed legal fraud; fraud in contemplation of law; equitable fraud. 2. See fraud in law."The layman would probably rather be found guilty of fraud, for he can then say the court was wrong, than be found guilty of'constructive fraud,' for he does not know what that means and he may doubt whether the court does either." Lon L. Fuller, Anatomy of the Law 12 (1968).
constructive intent
A legal principle that actual intent will be presumed when an act leading to the result could have been reasonably expected to cause that result. "Constructive intent is a fiction which permits lip service to the notion that intention is essential to criminality, while recognizing that unintended consequences of an act may sometimes be sufficient for guilt of some offenses." Rollin M. Perkins & Ronald N. Boyce, Criminal Law 835 (3d ed. 1982).
constructive knowledge
Knowledge that one using reasonable care or diligence should have, and therefore that is attributed by law to a given person <the court held that the partners had constructive knowledge of the partnership agreement even though none of them had read it>.
constructive larceny
See LARCENY.
constructive loss
See constructive total loss (1) under LOSS.
constructive malice
See implied malice.
constructive murder
See FELONY-MURDER RULE.
constructive notice
Notice arising by presumption of law from the existence of facts and circumstances that a party had a duty to take notice of, such as a registered deed or a pending lawsuit; notice presumed by law to have been acquired by a person and thus imputed to that person. - Also termed legal notice.
constructive payment
A payment made by the payor but not yet credited by the paye(e. For example, a rent check mailed on the first of the month is a constructive payment even though the landlord does not deposit the check until ten days later.
constructive possession
Control or dominion over a property without actual possession or custody of it. - Also termed effective possession; possessio fictitia. Cf. actual possession.
constructive reduction to practice
Filing a patent application on an invention or design. Brunswick Corp. v. United States, 34 Fed. Cl. 532 (1995).
constructive search
A subpoena of a corporation's records. "[I]t is settled that the so-called 'constructive search' involved in an administrative subpoena of corporate books or records constitutes a 'search' or 'seizure' within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment." 68 Am. Jur. 2d Searches and Seizures § 44, at 674 (1993).
constructive seisin
See seisin in law under SEISIN.
constructive seisin.
See seisin in law.
constructive service
See SERVICE (2).
constructive taking
An act that does not equal an actual appropriation of an article but that does show an intention to convert it, as when a person entrusted with the possession of goods starts using them contrary to the owner's instructions. 2. Constitutional law. The government's actual or effective acquisition of private property either by ousting the owner and claiming title or by destroying the property or severely impairing its utility. 0 There is a taking of property when government action directly interferes with or substantially disturbs the owner's use and enjoyment of the property. - Also termed constitutional taking. See CONDEMNATION (2); EMINENT DOMAIN.
constructive total loss
See LOSS.
constructive transfer
A delivery of an item - esp. a controlled substance - by someone other than the owner but at the owner's direction.
constructive trust
A trust imposed by a court on equitable grounds against one who has obtained property by wrongdoing, thereby preventing the wrongful holder from being unjustly enriched. ( Such a trust creates no fiduciary relationship. - Also termed implied trust; involuntary trust; trust de son tort; trust ex delicto; trust ex maleficio; remedial trust; trust in invitum. Cf. resulting trust. "A constructive trust is the formula through which the conscience of equity finds expression. When property has been acquired in such circumstances that the holder of the legal title may not in good conscience retain the beneficial interest, equity converts him into a trustee." Beatty u. Guggenheim Exploration Co., 122 N.E. 378, 380 (ICY. 1919) (Cardozo, J.)."It is sometimes said that when there are sufficient grounds for imposing a constructive trust, the court 'constructs a trust.' The expression is, of course, absurd. The word 'constructive' is derived from the verb 'construe,' not from the verb 'construct.' ... The court construes the circumstances in the sense that it explains or interprets them; it does not construct them." 5 Austin W. Scott & William F. Fratcher, The Law of Trusts § 462.4 (4th ed. 1987).
constructive-receipt doctrine
The rule that gross income under a taxpayer's control before it is actually received (such as accumulated interest income that has not been withdrawn) must be included by the taxpayer in gross income, unless the actual receipt is subject to significant constraints. IRCC (26 USCA) § 451.