Simple English definitions for legal terms
Read a random definition: Library of Congress
Pretermit means to ignore or purposely disregard something, or to accidentally overlook or omit something. For example, a court might pretermit a constitutional question by deciding a case on procedural grounds, or a person might pretermit a child in their will by accidentally leaving them out. This word is often used in legal contexts, especially when dealing with heirs.
Definition: To ignore or disregard purposely or to neglect, overlook, or omit accidentally.
Example 1: The court pretermitted the constitutional question by deciding the case on procedural grounds.
Example 2: The third child was pretermitted in the will.
In the first example, the court intentionally ignored or disregarded the constitutional question by deciding the case on procedural grounds. In the second example, the third child was accidentally overlooked or omitted in the will.
Note: In legal contexts, especially those involving heirs, the second sense of the definition is more commonly used.