Voidable

3 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Voidable \Void"a*ble\, a.
     1. Capable of being voided, or evacuated.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. (Law) Capable of being avoided, or of being adjudged void,
        invalid, and of no force; capable of being either avoided


        or confirmed.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              If the metropolitan . . . grants letters of
              administration, such administration is not, but
              voidable by sentence.                 --Ayliffe.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     Note: A voidable contract may be ratified and confirmed; to
           render it null and of no effect, it must be avoided; a
           void contract can not be ratified.
           [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  voidable
       adj : capable of being rescinded or voided; "the judgment was
             rescindable"; "voidable contracts" [syn: {rescindable}]

From Bouvier's Law Dictionary, Revised 6th Ed (1856) [bouvier]:

  VOIDABLE. That which has some force or effect, but which, in consequence of 
  some inherent quality, may be legally annulled or avoided. 
       2. As a familiar example, may be mentioned the case of a contract, made 
  by an infant with an adult, which maybe avoided or confirmed by the former 
  on his coining of age. Vide Parties, contracts. 
       3. Such contracts are generally of binding force until avoided by the 
  party having a right to annul them. Bac. Ab. Infancy, 1 3; Com. Dig. Enfant; 
  Fonb. Eq. b. 1, c. 2, Sec. 4, note b; 3 Burr. 1794 Nels. Ch. R. 5 5; 1 Atk. 
  3 5 4; Str. 9 3 7; Perk. Sec. 12. VOIR. An old French word, which signifies 
  the same as the modern word vrai, true. Voir dire, to speak truly, to tell 
  the truth. 
       2. When a witness is supposed to have an interest in the cause, the 
  party against whom he is called has the choice to prove such interest by 
  calling another witness to that fact, or be may require the witness produced 
  to be sworn on his voir dire as to whether he has an interest in the cause, 
  or not, but the party against whom he is called will not be allowed to have 
  recourse to both methods to prove the witness interest. If the witness 
  answers he has no interest, he is competent, his oath being conclusive; if 
  he swears he has an interest, he will be rejected. 
       3. Though this is the rule established beyond the power of the courts 
  to change, it seems not very satisfactory. The witness is sworn on his voir 
  dire to ascertain whether he has an interest, which would disqualify him, 
  because he would be tempted to perjure himself, if he testified when 
  interested. But when he is asked whether he has such an interest, if he is 
  dishonest and anxious to be sworn in the case, he will swear falsely he has 
  none, and his answer being conclusive, he will be admitted as competent; if, 
  on the contrary, he swears truly he has an interest, when he knows that will 
  exclude him, he is told that for being thus honest, he must be rejected. 
  See, generally, 12 Vin. Ab. 48; 22 Vin. Ab. 14; 1 Dall, 375; Dane's Ab. 
  Index, h.t.; and Interest.