Legal Definitions - appointment

An appointment, in a legal context, refers to the formal act of designating a person for a specific position, duty, or responsibility, often without an election. It can also refer to the position itself once filled, or, in a different legal area, the act of distributing property according to a pre-granted authority.

• Designation to a Public Office or Duty: This is the most common understanding of the term. It refers to the selection of an individual to fill a public office or a significant role within government or an organization, typically by an executive or governing body, rather than through a public vote. These positions often require specific qualifications and may involve a confirmation process by another body.

  • Example 1 (Judicial Appointment): After a federal appeals court judge retires, the President of the United States nominates a prominent legal scholar to fill the vacancy. This nomination then undergoes a rigorous review and confirmation process by the U.S. Senate. If the Senate votes to confirm the scholar, they receive the "appointment" to the federal judiciary.
  • Explanation: This illustrates an appointment as the formal designation of a person (the legal scholar) to a specific public office (federal appeals court judge) by an executive (the President), subject to legislative approval.
  • Example 2 (Administrative Appointment): A state governor establishes a new task force to study climate change impacts on the state's coastal regions. The governor then "appoints" a diverse group of scientists, environmentalists, and local community leaders to serve on this task force for a two-year term.
  • Explanation: Here, the appointment refers to the governor's act of formally selecting individuals for a specific public duty (serving on the climate change task force) that is not an elected position.

• Disposition of Property (Power of Appointment): In estate planning and property law, an appointment refers to the act of a person (called the "donee") exercising a special power granted to them by another person (the "donor") to decide who will receive certain property. This power is usually established in a will or trust document.

  • Example 3 (Estate Planning): A grandmother creates a trust for her grandchildren, but she gives her daughter, Maria, a "power of appointment" over a specific investment portfolio within the trust. This means Maria can decide, in her own will, which of her children (the grandmother's grandchildren) will ultimately inherit that particular portfolio after Maria's death. When Maria writes her will and specifies that her son, Leo, will receive those investments, she is making an "appointment" of the property.
  • Explanation: This demonstrates an appointment as the act of disposing of property (the investment portfolio) by exercising a pre-granted power (the power of appointment) to designate a specific recipient (Leo).