Legal Theory and Concepts
Introductory
Privilege
A legal liberty to act or refrain from acting because the actor is under no duty to do otherwise with respect to another person.
Why It Matters
Privilege clarifies that not every protected legal position is a claim against someone else. Many corporate, market, and contractual freedoms are liberties rather than enforceable claims.
Selected Literature
A short list of directly relevant archive entries.
1913
Introductory
Some Fundamental Legal Conceptions as Applied in Judicial Reasoning
Wesley Newcomb Hohfeld
Yale Law Journal
1917
Introductory
Fundamental Legal Conceptions as Applied in Judicial Reasoning
Wesley Newcomb Hohfeld
Yale Law Journal
Related Cases
1910
Foundations of Law and Economics
Vincent v. Lake Erie Transportation Co.
109 Minn. 456, 124 N.W. 221 (1910)
Private necessity, compensation, and liability for intentional emergency use of another's property.
1928
Foundations of Law and Economics
Palsgraf v. Long Island Railroad Co.
248 N.Y. 339, 162 N.E. 99 (1928)
Duty, foreseeability, and the legal boundary placed on liability for an extended chain of accidental harm.
1939
Corporate Law
Guth v. Loft, Inc.
5 A.2d 503 (Del. 1939)
Duty of loyalty and a corporate officer's appropriation of an opportunity connected to the corporation's business and resources.
1963
Securities Regulation
SEC v. Capital Gains Research Bureau, Inc.
375 U.S. 180 (1963)
Whether an investment adviser's undisclosed practice of trading before and after its recommendations could be enjoined under the Investment Advisers Act.