Legal Definitions - alienable

Alienable describes something that can be legally transferred from one owner to another. When an asset or a right is alienable, it means its ownership can be bought, sold, gifted, or otherwise conveyed to a different person or entity. Most private property is considered alienable, meaning it can be freely transferred, unless specific laws, contracts, or legal agreements place restrictions on its transferability.

Here are some examples to illustrate the concept of alienability:

• Residential Real Estate: Imagine a homeowner, Maria, decides to sell her house to a new buyer, David. The house, as a piece of private property, is alienable. Maria can legally transfer the ownership of the property to David through a sale agreement and a deed, which formally conveys the title.

  This illustrates alienability because the house's ownership interest can be freely transferred from Maria to David, demonstrating its transferable nature.

• Intellectual Property - Copyright: Consider a novelist, Ben, who writes a book. Ben holds the copyright to his novel, which is a form of intellectual property. If Ben decides to sell the film rights to his book to a movie studio, he is transferring a specific aspect of his copyright ownership to the studio.

  This shows that the copyright, or specific rights derived from it, is alienable because Ben can legally convey these rights to another entity, allowing the studio to produce a movie based on his work.

• Restricted Stock Units (RSUs) with a Vesting Period: Sarah works for a tech company and receives Restricted Stock Units (RSUs) as part of her compensation. Her employment contract specifies that she cannot sell or transfer these shares until they "vest" after a certain number of years of employment.

  During the vesting period, Sarah's RSUs are *not* immediately alienable because contractual restrictions prevent her from transferring ownership. Once the shares vest, they become fully alienable, meaning Sarah can then sell them on the open market or transfer them to another person.