Legal Definitions - alienate

To alienate means to transfer ownership or a legal right concerning property from one person or entity to another. Essentially, it describes the act of giving up control or possession of something valuable to someone else, either permanently or for a specific duration.

• Example 1: Selling a Home

  Imagine a homeowner decides to sell their house to a new buyer. When they sign the deed and complete the sale, they are alienating the property.

  Explanation: The homeowner is transferring the full legal ownership and control of the real estate to the buyer. This act of conveying the property to another party is what it means to alienate it.

• Example 2: Granting Patent Rights

  An inventor develops a groundbreaking new medical device and obtains a patent for it. Later, a large pharmaceutical company offers to buy the exclusive rights to manufacture and sell the device. The inventor agrees to sell these patent rights to the company.

  Explanation: By selling the patent rights, the inventor is alienating their intellectual property. They are transferring their exclusive legal right to exploit the invention to the pharmaceutical company, giving up their control over who can make, use, or sell the device.

• Example 3: Creating an Easement

  A farmer owns a large plot of land. A local water utility needs to run a new pipeline across a small section of the farmer's property to connect to a nearby town. The farmer agrees to grant the utility company an easement, which is a legal right to use that specific strip of land for the pipeline.

  Explanation: The farmer is alienating a property right. While they still own the entire farm, they have transferred a specific right—the right to use that particular strip of land for the pipeline—to the utility company. This limits the farmer's exclusive use of that portion of their property.