Acts 1873-75, but the matters under exclusive jurisdiction (e.g.

trusts, adminis
tration
of estates) are now dealt with in the Chancery Division. Compare CONCURRENT
JURISDICTION. 2. A clause in a commercial agreement providing that only the Engl
ish,
Scottish, or other courts will be entitled to determine disputes between the par
ties.
Normally agreements provide that the parties agree to submit to either the
exclusive or the nonexclusive jurisdiction of particular courts. If no such clau
se is
included, international conventions, such as the Brussels and Lugano conventions
,
determine which courts have jurisdiction. EU regulation 44/2001 contains provisi
ons
in this area applicable from January 2001. In particular, customers are given a
right
to bring proceedings in their home state.
excusable homicide The killing of a human being that results in no criminal
liability, either because it took place in lawful *self-defence or by misadventu
re (an
accident not involving gross negligence).
ex debito justitiae [Latin] As a matter of right. The phrase is applied to remed
ies
that the court is bound to give when they are claimed, as distinct from those th
at it
has discretion to grant.
executed adj. Completed. A contract that has been carried out by both parties is
said to have been executed, and *consideration that has been actually given for
a
contract is described as executed consideration. See also EXECUTED TRUST. Compar
e
EXECUTORY.
executed trust (completely constituted trust, perfect trust) A trust that is
complete and enforceable by the beneficiaries without further acts by the settlo
r.
Compare EXECUTORY TRUST.
execution n. 1. The process of carrying out a sentence of death imposed by a
court. See also CAPITAL PUNISHMENT. 2. The enforcement of the rights of a judgme
nt
creditor (see also ENFORCEMENT OF JUDGMENT). The term is often used to mean the
recovery of a debt only, especially by seizure of goods belonging to the debtor
under
a writ of *fieri facias or a warrant of execution. In the case of property not s
ubject
to ordinary forms of execution, e.g. an interest under a trust, judgment is enfo
rced
by means of *equitable execution. 3. The completion of the formalities necessary
for a written document to become legally valid. In the case of a *deed, for exam
ple,
this comprises the signing and delivery of the document. See alsoEXECUTION OF WI
LL.
execution of will The process by which a testator's will is made legally valid.
Under the Wills Act 1837 the will must be signed at the end by the testator or b
y
someone authorized by him, and the signature must be made or acknowledged (see
ACKNOWLEDGMENT) by the testator in the presence of at least two witnesses, prese
nt
at the same time, who must themselves sign the will or acknowledge their
signatures in the testator's presence. A will witnessed by a beneficiary or the
beneficiary's spouse is not void, but the gift to that beneficiary or spouse is

void.
executive agency An independent agency, operating under a chief executive,
that is responsible for delivering a service according to the policy of a centra
l
government department. Examples are the Benefits Agency and the Passport
Agency. The intention is that central government should become purely policymaki
ng,
the services it is responsible for being delivered by executive agencies.
executor n. A person appointed by a will to administer the testator's estate. A
deceased person's property is vested in his executors, who are empowered to deal
with it as directed by the will from the time of the testator's death. They must
,
however, usually obtain a grant of *probate from the court in order to prove the
will and their right to deal with the estate. Appointment as an executor confers
only the power to deal with the deceased's property in accordance with his will,
and
not beneficial ownership, although an executor may also be a beneficiary under t
he
will. Compare ADMINISTRATOR.
executor de son tort [French: by his own wrongdoing] A person who deals
(intermeddles) with a deceased person's assets without the authority of the righ
tful
personal representatives or of the court. He is answerable to the rightful perso
nal
representatives and to the creditors of the estate for any acts done without suc
h
authority and for any assets of the estate that come into his hands.
executor's year The period of a year, starting from the death of the deceased,
within which nobody can compel his personal representatives to distribute the
estate, even if the testator has directed payment of a legacy before the expiry
of
that period (Administration of Estates Act 1925).
executory adj. Remaining to be done. A contract that has yet to be carried out i
s
said to be an executory contract, and *consideration that has still to be given
for a
contract is described as executory consideration. See also EXECUTORY INTEREST;
EXECUTORY TRUST. Compare EXECUTED.
executory interest (mainly historical) An interest in property that arises or
passes to a particular person on the occurrence of a specified event. For exampl
e,
when property is settled in trust "for A, but for B if he marries Mary", then B
has
an executory interest. Under the Law of Property Act 1925 executory interests in
land can only exist as equitable interests. Compare REMAINDER; REVERSION.
executory trust (imperfect trust, incompletely constituted trust) A trust that
is incomplete, i.e. one that the beneficiaries are unable to enforce until some
further
act is done by the settlor or a third party. Compare EXECUTED TRUST.
exemplary damages (punitive damages, vindictive damages) Damages given
to punish the defendant rather than (or as well as) to compensate the claimant f
or
harm done. Such damages are exceptional in tort, since the general rule is that
damages are given only to compensate for loss caused. They can be awarded in som
e
tort actions: (1) when expressly authorized by statute; (2) to punish oppressive
,
arbitrary, or unconstitutional acts by government servants; (3)when the defendan
t
has deliberately calculated that the profits to be made out of committing a tort

(e.g.
by publishing a defamatory book) may exceed the damages at risk. In such cases,
exemplary damages are given to prove that "tort does not pay". Exemplary damages
cannot be given for breach of contract.
exemption clause A term in a contract purporting to exclude or restrict the
liability of one of the parties in specified circumstances. The courts do not re
gard
exemption clauses with favour. If such a clause is ambiguous, they will interpre
t it
narrowly rather than widely. If an exclusion or restriction is not recited in a
formal
contract but is specified or referred to in an informal document, such as a tick
et or
a notice displayed in a hotel, it will not even be treated as a term of the cont
ract
(unless reasonable steps were taken to bring it to the notice of the person affe
cted
at the time of contracting). The Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 and Unfair Terms
in
Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999 contain complex provisions limiting the
extent to which a person can exclude or restrict his *business liability towards
consumers. In addition, the 1977 Act subjects certain types of exemption clause
to a
test of reasonableness, even in a business-to-business transaction. The Office o
f Fair
Trading runs an unfair terms unit to monitor such clauses and enforce the 1999
Regulations. Other statutes forbidding the exclusion or restriction of particula
rissued by the Registrar-General of Births, Deaths, and Marriages. Marriage outs
ide a
register office or registered building may now take place in certain other licen
sed
venues, such as stately homes.
marriage by religious licence A marriage in the Church of England based on
the grant of an ecclesiastical licence, rather than on publication of *ba=s. A
common licence may be granted if one of the parties swears an affidavit that he
believes there is no lawful impediment, that at least one of the parties has bee
n
resident in the parish for at least 15 days previously (or usually worships at t
he
church), and that (in the case of a minor) the consent of each parent with *pare
ntal
responsibility (or a person in whose favour a residence order is made) has been
obtained. If no caveat is issued against the grant of a licence, the ecclesiasti
cal judge
will grant a licence and the marriage may take place immediately. The Archbishop
of Canterbury may also grant a special licence authorizing a marriage at any tim
e
of the day or night in any church, chapel, or other convenient place (even if
unconsecrated).
marriage ceremony The ceremony creating the status of marriage. There are
four main types of marriage ceremony (excluding marriage in military chapels). I
n a
civil marriage, the ceremony takes place in a register office or other registere
d
venue, with open doors, in the presence of the Superintendent Registrar (who
conducts the ceremony), a registrar (who supervises registration formalities), a
nd at
least two witnesses. Under the Marriage Act 1983, housebound and detained person
s
may get married where they reside.

In a Church of England marriage, the ceremony usually takes place in church and
is celebrated by a clergyman in the presence of at least two witnesses according
to
the rite of the Book of Common Prayer (or any alternative authorized form of
service). A clergyman may refuse to solemnize the marriage of anyone whose
former marriage has been dissolved if the former spouse is still living, or whos
e
marriage would have been void for *affinity of the parties before the passing of
the
Marriage (Prohibited Degrees of Relationship) Act 1986. The marriage ceremony in
Quaker and Jewish marriages is governed by the rules of those religions and need
not be celebrated in a registered building, or by an authorized person, or in pu
blic.
All other religious marriage ceremonies must be celebrated in a registered build
ing
designated as a place of meeting for religious worship, with open doors, and in
the
presence of at least two witnesses and a registrar or previously notified author
ized
person.
marriage settlement A *settlement made between the parties to a marriage. A
settlement made before the marriage ceremony is called an antenuptial
settlement; that made after the marriage is a postnuptial settlement. The
purpose of a marriage settlement is to provide an income for one spouse or the
children, while securing the capital for the other spouse. The courts have power
when giving decrees of divorce, nullity, or judicial separation either to order
property owned by one spouse to be settled for the benefit of the other spouse a
nd
children or to vary the terms of any existing ante- or postnuptial settlement. T
his
power is often used to retain the use of the matrimonial home until the children
are independent, as well as to retain the parents' financial investment.
marshalling of assets A process in which the claims of different creditors are
directed towards different funds of the same debtor in an attempt to reach a fai
r
result. When there are two creditors and two funds, and one has a claim exclusiv
ely
on one fund but the other can claim against either fund, the rule of marshalling
requires the latter to claim against the fund from which the former is excluded.
The aim is, so far as possible, to allocate the assets so as to satisfy all the
creditors.
marshalling of securities An application of *marshalling of assets. If A
mortgages two properties to B and then mortgages one of the properties in additi
on
to C (who mayor may not know of B's mortgage) B,as first mortgagee, may obtain
his money from whichever mortgaged property he chooses. However, if he chooses
to obtain his money from the property mortgaged to C, C may if necessary obtain
his money from the other property. This right cannot be exercised when a
purchaser has obtained the property without knowing of the facts giving rise to
the
right to marshal.
Martens clause A clause that was included in the Hague Conventions of 1899 and
1907 by the Russian delegate, Friedrich von Martens (1845-1909), and has since t
hen
been included in many other treaties. It states that anything not proscribed by
the
regulations of the treaty will be subject to the international law and will ther
efore
not necessarily be permissible; it also allows the regulations of the treaty to
keep

pace with the consequences of modern developments in warfare.

martial law Government by the military authorities when the normal machinery
of government has broken down as a result of invasion, civil war, or large-scale
insurrection. The constitution of the UK does not provide for a declaration (wit
h
specified consequences) of martial law; it is no more than a situation capable o
f
arising. While the military authorities are restoring order, their conduct could
not
be called into question by the ordinary courts of law. After the restoration of
order,
the legality of their actions would be theoretically capable of examination, but
the
standards that would be applied by the courts are unknown. Martial law should no
t
be confused with military law (see SERVICE LAW); any courts held by the military
authorities to try civilians during a state of martial law would not enjoy the s
tatus
of courts martiaL
master n. 1. One of the *Masters of the Supreme Court or the Masters of
the Bench (see BENCHERS). 2. The person having command or charge of a vesseL
3. Formerly, an *employer. See alsoEMPLOYER AND EMPLOYEE.
Master of the Rolls (MR) The judge who is president of the Civil Division of the
*Court of AppeaL The office is an ancient one and was originally held by the kee
per
of the public records. Later the holder was a judge of the Court of Chancery and
assistant to the Lord Chancellor, with his own court, the Rolls Court. Since 188
1 he
has been a judge of the Court of Appeal only, but retains important duties in
relation to public records. He also admits solicitors to practice.
Masters of the Bench See BENCHERS.
Masters of the Supreme Court Inferior judicial officers of the *Queen's Bench
and *Chancery Divisions of the High Court. Their principal function is to superv
ise
*interim (interlocutory) proceedings in litigation and (especially in the Chance
ry
Division) to take accounts. By convention, Chancery Masters are usually solicito
rs and
Queen's Bench Masters are usually barristers. In the provinces a comparable
jurisdiction is exercised by *district judges of the High Court. See also DISTRI
CT
REGISTRY.
matching broker See STOCK EXCHANGE.rfgt4gggggggggggggggggggggggtgrcg5hv6j yrtjtu
b7myj 77ujtr n 6j56j t6uuk6 m tm6u jujm5ummytn muk6uj j6unrynrkkkkkolo;kum k65j6
j 66j6j n rrhv5j67jvheuh8oj5g65ihjoki5hjer5krrhv5j67jvheuh8oj5g65ihjoki5hjer5krr
hv5j67jvheuh8oj5g65ihjoki5hjer5k
issued by the Registrar-General of Births, Deaths, and Marriages. Marriage outsi
de a
register office or registered building may now take place in certain other licen
sed
venues, such as stately homes.
marriage by religious licence A marriage in the Church of England based on
the grant of an ecclesiastical licence, rather than on publication of *ba=s. A
common licence may be granted if one of the parties swears an affidavit that he
believes there is no lawful impediment, that at least one of the parties has bee
n
resident in the parish for at least 15 days previously (or usually worships at t
he
church), and that (in the case of a minor) the consent of each parent with *pare
ntal

responsibility (or a person in whose favour a residence order is made) has been
obtained. If no caveat is issued against the grant of a licence, the ecclesiasti
cal judge
will grant a licence and the marriage may take place immediately. The Archbishop
of Canterbury may also grant a special licence authorizing a marriage at any tim
e
of the day or night in any church, chapel, or other convenient place (even if
unconsecrated).
marriage ceremony The ceremony creating the status of marriage. There are
four main types of marriage ceremony (excluding marriage in military chapels). I
n a
civil marriage, the ceremony takes place in a register office or other registere
d
venue, with open doors, in the presence of the Superintendent Registrar (who
conducts the ceremony), a registrar (who supervises registration formalities), a
nd at
least two witnesses. Under the Marriage Act 1983, housebound and detained person
s
may get married where they reside.
In a Church of England marriage, the ceremony usually takes place in church and
is celebrated by a clergyman in the presence of at least two witnesses according
to
the rite of the Book of Common Prayer (or any alternative authorized form of
service). A clergyman may refuse to solemnize the marriage of anyone whose
former marriage has been dissolved if the former spouse is still living, or whos
e
marriage would have been void for *affinity of the parties before the passing of
the
Marriage (Prohibited Degrees of Relationship) Act 1986. The marriage ceremony in
Quaker and Jewish marriages is governed by the rules of those religions and need
not be celebrated in a registered building, or by an authorized person, or in pu
blic.
All other religious marriage ceremonies must be celebrated in a registered build
ing
designated as a place of meeting for religious worship, with open doors, and in
the
presence of at least two witnesses and a registrar or previously notified author
ized
person.
marriage settlement A *settlement made between the parties to a marriage. A
settlement made before the marriage ceremony is called an antenuptial
settlement; that made after the marriage is a postnuptial settlement. The
purpose of a marriage settlement is to provide an income for one spouse or the
children, while securing the capital for the other spouse. The courts have power
when giving decrees of divorce, nullity, or judicial separation either to order
property owned by one spouse to be settled for the benefit of the other spouse a
nd
children or to vary the terms of any existing ante- or postnuptial settlement. T
his
power is often used to retain the use of the matrimonial home until the children
are independent, as well as to retain the parents' financial investment.
marshalling of assets A process in which the claims of different creditors are
directed towards different funds of the same debtor in an attempt to reach a fai
r
result. When there are two creditors and two funds, and one has a claim exclusiv
ely
on one fund but the other can claim against either fund, the rule of marshalling
requires the latter to claim against the fund from which the former is excluded.
The aim is, so far as possible, to allocate the assets so as to satisfy all the
creditors.

marshalling of securities An application of *marshalling of assets. If A

mortgages two properties to B and then mortgages one of the properties in additi
on
to C (who mayor may not know of B's mortgage) B,as first mortgagee, may obtain
his money from whichever mortgaged property he chooses. However, if he chooses
to obtain his money from the property mortgaged to C, C may if necessary obtain
his money from the other property. This right cannot be exercised when a
purchaser has obtained the property without knowing of the facts giving rise to
the
right to marshal.
Martens clause A clause that was included in the Hague Conventions of 1899 and
1907 by the Russian delegate, Friedrich von Martens (1845-1909), and has since t
hen
been included in many other treaties. It states that anything not proscribed by
the
regulations of the treaty will be subject to the international law and will ther
efore
not necessarily be permissible; it also allows the regulations of the treaty to
keep
pace with the consequences of modern developments in warfare.
martial law Government by the military authorities when the normal machinery
of government has broken down as a result of invasion, civil war, or large-scale
insurrection. The constitution of the UK does not provide for a declaration (wit
h
specified consequences) of martial law; it is no more than a situation capable o
f
arising. While the military authorities are restoring order, their conduct could
not
be called into question by the ordinary courts of law. After the restoration of
order,
the legality of their actions would be theoretically capable of examination, but
the
standards that would be applied by the courts are unknown. Martial law should no
t
be confused with military law (see SERVICE LAW); any courts held by the military
authorities to try civilians during a state of martial law would not enjoy the s
tatus
of courts martiaL
master n. 1. One of the *Masters of the Supreme Court or the Masters of
the Bench (see BENCHERS). 2. The person having command or charge of a vesseL
3. Formerly, an *employer. See alsoEMPLOYER AND EMPLOYEE.
Master of the Rolls (MR) The judge who is president of the Civil Division of the
*Court of AppeaL The office is an ancient one and was originally held by the kee
per
of the public records. Later the holder was a judge of the Court of Chancery and
assistant to the Lord Chancellor, with his own court, the Rolls Court. Since 188
1 he
has been a judge of the Court of Appeal only, but retains important duties in
relation to public records. He also admits solicitors to practice.
Masters of the Bench See BENCHERS.
Masters of the Supreme Court Inferior judicial officers of the *Queen's Bench
and *Chancery Divisions of the High Court. Their principal function is to superv
ise
*interim (interlocutory) proceedings in litigation and (especially in the Chance
ry
Division) to take accounts. By convention, Chancery Masters are usually solicito
rs and
Queen's Bench Masters are usually barristers. In the provinces a comparable
jurisdiction is exercised by *district judges of the High Court. See also DISTRI
CT

REGISTRY.
matching broker See STOCK EXCHANGE.