Abstract (law)

In law, an abstract is a brief statement that contains the most important points of a long legal document or of several related legal papers.

Types of legislation

Wikipedia article: Property abstract

The abstract of title, used in real estate transactions, is the more common form of abstract. It lists all the owners of a piece of land, a house, or a building before it came into the present owner's possession. The abstract also records all deeds, wills, mortgages, and other documents that affect property ownership. It describes a chain of transfers from owner to owner and any agreements by former owners that are binding on later owners.

Patent law

In the context of patent law, particularly concerning prior art searches, examining abstracts is a common method for identifying relevant prior art documents that challenge the novelty or inventive step (or non-obviousness, as referred to in United States patent law) of an invention. In United States patent law, the abstract may be referred to as the "Abstract of the Disclosure."

See also

• Abstract (legal)
• Abstract (summary)
• Introduction
• Preamble
• Preface
• Foreword
• Prologue
• Afterword
• Conclusion
• Epigraph
• Epilogue
• Postface
• Postscript

External links

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