Legal Definitions - third person

In legal contexts, the term third person (often used interchangeably with third party) refers to an individual or entity who is not one of the primary parties directly involved in a contract, transaction, or legal dispute, but who may be affected by it, have an interest in it, or be brought into the situation in some capacity.

Essentially, if there are two main parties to an agreement or conflict, anyone else who is relevant to the situation but not directly one of those two main parties is considered a third person.

• Example 1: Contractual Guarantee

  Imagine a student signs a lease agreement with a landlord to rent an apartment. The student and the landlord are the primary parties to the lease contract. However, if the student's parents agree to co-sign the lease as guarantors, promising to pay the rent if the student defaults, the parents are considered third persons. They are not directly renting the apartment, but they have a legal obligation tied to the primary agreement between the student and the landlord.

• Example 2: Automobile Accident Claim

  Consider a situation where Driver A and Driver B are involved in a car collision. Driver A sues Driver B for damages to their vehicle and personal injuries. If a pedestrian was standing nearby and was injured by flying debris from the crash, that pedestrian is a third person. They were not directly involved in the act of driving or the collision itself between Driver A and Driver B, but they suffered harm as a result and may have their own legal claim against one or both drivers.

• Example 3: Insurance Coverage

  When an individual purchases liability insurance for their home, the contract is primarily between the homeowner (the first party) and the insurance company (the second party). If a visitor (a third person) slips and falls on the homeowner's property and sustains an injury, the homeowner's liability insurance policy would typically cover the homeowner's legal responsibility to that injured visitor. The visitor is a third person because they are not a party to the insurance contract itself, but they are directly affected by the homeowner's actions and the policy's coverage.