Legal Definitions - sparsim

Sparsim describes something that is scattered or distributed in various places, here and there, rather than being concentrated in a single, specific location.

Here are some examples illustrating the application of this term:

• Imagine a large commercial property where a tenant has made unauthorized alterations. If these alterations are not confined to one room but are found sparsim—for instance, a small, unapproved wall removal in one office, a new light fixture installed without permission in another, and a minor plumbing change in a third area—it indicates a pattern of scattered, distributed changes across the property rather than a single, contained incident.

  This illustrates sparsim because the unauthorized changes are not localized to one specific spot but are spread out in various, distinct locations throughout the property.

• Consider a situation involving a company's compliance with environmental regulations. If inspectors find minor violations of waste disposal procedures not at a single collection point, but sparsim across different departments, storage areas, and even in the company's external operations over time, it suggests a widespread, inconsistent adherence to rules rather than an isolated oversight.

  Here, sparsim highlights that the non-compliance issues are dispersed "here and there" throughout the company's operations, indicating a broader, less centralized problem.

• In a legal dispute concerning intellectual property, if a plaintiff alleges that their copyrighted material has been infringed upon, and instances of this infringement are discovered sparsim across various unrelated websites, social media accounts, and small publications, rather than being copied wholesale by a single entity, it demonstrates a pattern of widespread, fragmented misuse.

  This example shows sparsim because the instances of infringement are not consolidated but are scattered across numerous, distinct platforms and sources.