Law Dictionary Definitions

besayel (bes-ay-<<schwa>>l). [Law French] Hist. 1.A writ of right used by a great-grandfather’s heirs to recover property held by the great-grandfather. See assize of mort d’ancestor under ASSIZE(6).2. A great-grandfather. — Also spelled besaiel; besaile; bisaile; besayle. Cf. AIEL; COSINAGE. [Blacks Law 8th]

Bertillon     system   (b<<schwa>>r-t<<schwa>>-lon   or         bair-tee-yawn). A          system   of anthropometry once used to identify criminals by measuring and describing them. • The Bertillon system is named for Alphonse Bertillon, the French anthropologist who developed the technique early in the 20th century. It has been largely replaced by fingerprinting. Cf. ANTHROPOMETRY.…

Berry rule. The doctrine that a defendant seeking a new trial on grounds of newly discovered evidence must show that (1) the evidence is newly discovered and was unknown to the defendant   at the time of trial; (2) the evidence is material rather than merely cumulative or impeaching; (3) the evidence will probably produce…

Berne Union.Copyright. The treaty alliance of Berne Convention member nations.[Blacks Law 8th]

Berne Safeguard Clause.Copyright. A provision in the Universal Copyright Convention barring protection in Berne Union countries for the works of any country that withdraws from the Berne Union after January 1, 1951. • The purpose of the clause was to prevent countries from withdrawing from the Berne Union in favor of the more relaxed copyright-protection…

Berne-plus,adj. Copyright. Of or relating to a copyright-treaty provision that affords greater intellectual-property protection than the minimum required by the Berne Convention, either by granting stronger rights or by extending protection to new forms of subject matter. • The term arose during negotiations over the TRIPs Agreement, reflecting the principle that the treaty should incorporate…

Berne Paris Act.Copyright. A 1971 revision of the Berne Convention reducing the obligations of nations that became members as colonies of signatories. — Also termed 1971 Paris Act of the Berne Convention.[Blacks Law 8th]

Berne-minus,adj. Copyright. Of or relating to the second sentence of Art. 9(1) of the TRIPs Agreement, which provides that intellectual-property rights and duties under the Berne Convention will not be expressly enforced on noncomplying signators through the TRIPs Agreement. U.S. reluctance to expressly protect moral rights of authors and artists has been criticized as a…

Berne Copyright Convention.See BERNE CONVENTION.[Blacks Law 8th]

  Berne Convention Implementation Act.Copyright. The 1988 federal law making the United States a signatory to the Berne Convention, 102 years after the convention was first opened for signatures. • The law ended rigid formalities for registration and marking, although registration is still required before U.S.-copyright owners can sue for infringement. Pub. L. No. 100-568,…