Legal Definitions - adulterine

Adulterine is an adjective with several distinct meanings, primarily referring to something connected to adultery, or more broadly, something unauthorized, illegal, or debased.

• Born of Adultery: This is perhaps the most direct and historically significant legal meaning. It describes a child conceived or born to parents who were not married to each other, where at least one parent was legally married to someone else at the time. Such a child was historically considered illegitimate.

  • Example: In a historical legal context, if a married man had a child with a woman who was not his wife, that child would have been legally classified as adulterine.

    Explanation: This example illustrates the term's use to describe a child whose parentage arose from an extramarital affair, highlighting the historical legal implications of such a birth.

• Unauthorized or Unlicensed: The term can also describe an organization, group, or activity that operates without proper legal permission, charter, or official sanction.

  • Example: During the medieval period, a group of artisans might form a trade association to regulate their craft and prices without obtaining an official charter from the monarch or local governing body.

    Explanation: Such an association would be considered an adulterine guild because it functions as an organized entity, exercising privileges without the necessary legal authorization or license.

• Debased or Impure: Less commonly in modern legal contexts, "adulterine" can refer to something that has been adulterated, meaning its original quality or purity has been compromised by the addition of inferior, foreign, or unauthorized substances.

  • Example: A company sells a product labeled as "100% pure olive oil," but laboratory tests reveal it contains a significant percentage of cheaper vegetable oil.

    Explanation: The product, having been made impure by the addition of an unauthorized substance, could be described as adulterine because its quality has been debased from its advertised standard.