Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
The capacity to perform an act or service. This power enables a person to carry out a legal act such as entering a contract, making a statement, or protecting an interest in litigation.
Sources & Authorities
How it applies
Common Examples
6
M'Naghten Acquittal Denied
Andre Antoine shot a neighbor after hearing voices that told him the act was morally justified. At trial he proved a mental disease caused the delusion. The court still denied acquittal because he retained the ability to recognize that society viewed the shooting as wrong.
Merger Bars Post-Closing Suit
Anita Ali accepted the deed at closing without any repair covenant appearing in it. After discovering a leaking roof she sued the seller for breach of the purchase contract. The court held that merger eliminated her ability to enforce the earlier promise.
Electoral College Appointment
Alan Ackerman served as a state legislator who directed his state's appointment of presidential electors. The Constitution vested the executive power in the President and gave each state the ability to choose its electors through the legislature's chosen method.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Statutes
Federal Rules
Uniform Acts
Model Codes
Common Law
Restatements
Necessary Party Impairment
Anthony Arnold held a recorded easement over land that was the subject of a quiet-title action between two other parties. The court found that disposing of the suit in his absence would impair his ability to protect the easement interest, requiring joinder.
Party Admission Offered
Audrey Ashton, sued for breach, had earlier told her accountant that she never intended to perform the contract. The accountant repeated the statement at trial. The court admitted it as non-hearsay because it was made by the party exercising her ability to bind herself in an individual capacity.
Contribution to Obtain Judgeship
Adam Anderson contributed heavily to a judicial candidate's campaign. Shortly afterward the newly elected judge appointed Anderson's firm to represent the county in major litigation. The ethics rule barred the appointment because the contribution demonstrated Anderson's ability to obtain the engagement through political means.
Common questions
Frequently Asked
3
Does mental illness alone establish the ability to claim an insanity defense under M'Naghten?+
No. The defendant must also lack the capacity to recognize that society regards the conduct as wrong. Belief that the act is morally right is insufficient without that additional loss of capacity.
After closing, can a buyer still sue for breach of a repair promise contained only in the purchase contract?+
Generally no. Merger discharges contractual promises not embodied in the deed, leaving the deed as the sole measure of the grantor's obligations unless fraud, mutual mistake, or a collateral promise applies.
When does a nonparty's absence impair that person's ability to protect an interest under Rule 19?+
Absence impairs the ability when disposing of the action would, as a practical matter, impede the person's capacity to safeguard the claimed interest in the subject of the suit.
5 U.S. (1 Cranch) 137 (1803)Property
…in two distinct capacities: as a public ministerial officer of the United States and as agent of the President. In the first capacity his duty is to the United States or its citizens; in the other his duty is to the President. In the former capacity he is compellable by mandamus to do his duty; in the latter he is not.…
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