Legal documents

A contract is an agreement that specifies certain legally enforceable rights and obligations pertaining to two or more parties. A contract typically involves consent to transfer of goods, services, money, or promise to transfer any of those at a future date. The activities and intentions of the parties entering into a contract may be referred to as contracting. In the event of a breach of contract, the injured party may seek judicial remedies such as damages or equitable remedies such as specific performance or rescission. A binding agreement between actors in international law is known as a t

negotiable instrument, wherein one party makes an unconditional promise in writing to pay a determinate sum of money to the other

right|thumb|300px|An example of a charter (Magna Carta). A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the recipient admits a limited (or inferior) status within the relationship, and it is within that sense that charters were historically granted, and it is that sense which is retained in modern usage of the term. In early medieval Britain, charters transferred land from donors to recipients.

right|thumb|The preamble to the United Nations Charter A preamble () is an introductory and expressionary statement in a document that explains the document's purpose and underlying philosophy. When applied to the opening paragraphs of a statute, it may recite historical facts pertinent to the subject of the statute. It is distinct from the long title or enacting formula of a law.

In legal terminology, a complaint is any formal legal document that sets out the facts and legal reasons (see: cause of action) that the filing party or parties (the plaintiff(s)) believes are sufficient to support a claim against the party or parties against whom the claim is brought (the defendant(s)) that entitles the plaintiff(s) to a remedy (either money damages or injunctive relief). For example, the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP) that govern civil litigation in United States courts provide that a civil action is commenced with the filing or service of a pleading called a compla

right|thumb|Memo written by a White House staff member during the tenure of [[Jimmy Carter as US president]]

paper or cardboard document showing payment for access to an event or service

written contract entered into by a couple prior to marriage or a civil union

Latin legal term meaning "friend of the court"

A deed is a legal document that is signed and delivered, especially concerning the ownership of property or legal rights. Specifically, in common law, a deed is any legal instrument in writing which passes, affirms or confirms an interest, right, or property and that is signed, attested, delivered, and in some jurisdictions, sealed. It is commonly associated with transferring (conveyancing) title to property. The deed has a greater presumption of validity and is less rebuttable than an instrument signed by the party to the deed. A deed can be unilateral or bilateral. Deeds include conveyances,

An amendment is a formal or official change made to a law, contract, constitution, or other legal document. It is based on the verb to amend, which means to change for better. Amendments can add, remove, or update parts of these agreements. They are often used when it is better to change the document than to write a new one. Only the legislative branch is involved in the amendment process.

type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order

governmental authorization of attack privateering

document guaranteeing the payment of a specific amount of money, either on demand, or at a set time

contractual agreement not to disclose specified information

thumb|right|200px|A sign in Chicago offering space for lease

1961 international treaty drafted by the Hague Conference on Private International Law

thumb|Vasil Levski's affidavit, 16 June 1872, Bucharest, Romania

legal document in which a person specifies what actions should be taken for their health if they are no longer able to make decisions for themselves because of illness or incapacity

A subpoena (; also subpena, subpœna) or witness summons is a writ issued by a government agency, most often a court, to compel testimony by a witness or production of evidence under a penalty for failure. There are two common types of subpoenas: subpoena ad testificandum orders a person to testify before the ordering authority or face punishment. subpoena duces tecum orders a person or organization to bring physical evidence before the ordering authority or face punishment. This is often used for requests to mail copies of documents to a requesting party or directly to a court.

orders of the King of France, often arrest warrants

A rescript is a public government document. More formally, it is a document issued not on the initiative of the author, but in response to a question (usually legal) posed to the author. The word originates from replies issued by Roman emperors to such questions and is also used in modern legal terminology and the Papal curia.

An escrow is a contractual arrangement in which a third party (the stakeholder or escrow agent) receives and disburses money or property for the primary transacting parties, with the disbursement dependent on conditions agreed to by the transacting parties. Examples include an account established by a broker for holding funds on behalf of the broker's principal or some other person until the consummation or termination of a transaction; or, a trust account held in the borrower's name to pay obligations such as property taxes and insurance premiums. The word derives from the Old French word , m

addition of a second signature onto a document

report from a consumer providing documentation about a problem

document certified by a notary

Testamentary document

A summons (also known in England and Wales as a claim form or plaint note, and in the Australian state of New South Wales as a court attendance notice (CAN)) is a legal document issued by a court (a judicial summons) or by an administrative agency of government (an administrative summons) for various purposes.

document outlining one or more agreements between two or more parties before the agreements are finalized

thumb|A writ of attachment

form of the correspondence between the diplomatic missions

permission to take a job within a foreign country

thumbnail|right|A hundi for Rs 2500 of 1951, stamped in the Bombay Province with a pre-printed revenue stamp. A hundi or hundee is a financial instrument that was developed in Medieval India for use in trade and credit transactions. Hundis are used as a form of remittance instrument to transfer money from place to place, as a form of credit instrument or IOU to borrow money and as a bill of exchange in trade transactions. The Reserve Bank of India describes the hundi as "an unconditional order in writing made by a person directing another to pay a certain sum of money to a person named in the

financial guarantee from a lender

treaty combining North Borneo, Sarawak and Singapore into Malaya

In law as practiced in countries that follow the English models, a pleading is a formal written statement of one party's claims or defenses in response to another party's complaint(s) in a civil action. The parties' pleadings in a case define the issues to be adjudicated in the action. The Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) govern pleading in England and Wales. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure govern pleading in United States federal courts. Each state in the United States has its own statutes and rules that govern pleading in the courts of that state.

contract used in renting

air consignment document

international alert-announcement

legal document certifying ownership of share of company, association etc

type of document

copy of a document bearing an endorsement or certificate that it is a true copy of the primary document

Formal request by a court to a foreign court for judicial assistance

treaty

company founding document (often in conjunction with articles of association)

Agreement between shareholders

type of document

kashmir agreement

release of legal rights of photograph

contract to become rightholder of a creative work

written legal document used in various legal adversarial systems that is presented to a court

United Kingdom legislation

document that transfers ownership of goods

treaty for princely states to join India or Pakistan

US government administrative subpoena

thumb|The port and fleet of Genoa, early 14th century The commenda was a medieval contract which developed in Italy around the 13th century, and was an early form of limited partnership. The commenda was an agreement between an investing partner and a traveling partner to conduct a commercial enterprise, usually overseas. The terms of the partnership varied, and are usually categorized by modern historians as unilateral commenda and bilateral commenda, based on the share of contributions and profits between the partners. The bilateral commenda was known in Venice as collegantia or colleganza.

yale University digital library of law, history and diplomacy

Legal document, filed in response to a complaint

document in which a feud was announced