Legal Definitions - darraign

The term darraign is a historical legal verb, meaning it was used in legal contexts in the past but is not commonly used today. It carries two main senses:

• To displace or disarrange: This refers to the act of challenging, disrupting, or unsettling an existing claim, order, or argument.
• To respond to an accusation or settle a dispute: This meaning relates to formally addressing a charge made against someone or resolving a disagreement between parties.

Here are some examples illustrating the historical use of "darraign":

• Imagine a dispute in medieval times where one noble family claimed ownership of a particular forest, but another family presented ancient charters to challenge that claim. The second family would be attempting to darraign the first family's established right to the forest, effectively seeking to displace or disarrange their perceived ownership.

  This example illustrates "darraign" in the sense of challenging or disrupting an existing claim or established order.

• If a knight in a historical court was accused of breaking an oath of fealty, he would be expected to darraign the accusation. This would involve presenting his defense, perhaps by calling witnesses or offering evidence to refute the charges made against him.

  Here, "darraign" demonstrates the act of formally responding to an accusation or charge.

• Consider two neighboring villages in a historical setting that had a long-standing disagreement over the exact boundary line between their common lands. They might agree to bring their arguments before a local magistrate to darraign the dispute, seeking a formal and binding resolution to their disagreement.

  This example shows "darraign" being used in the context of formally settling a disagreement or dispute.

Historically, this term was also spelled deraign or dereyne.