Also known as: land warrants · land-warrant · warrant
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A document issued by the government that entitles the holder to receive a specified quantity of public land upon compliance with prescribed legal steps. It contains an official description of the land together with the name and address of the entitled person and constitutes prima facie evidence of those matters.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Layla Lane held a land warrant describing a quarter-section in the western district. When she appeared before the land office with the required proof of settlement, the officer accepted the warrant as establishing her entitlement and issued the patent. The government later could not deny the description recited in the warrant.
Luis Lopez kept his land warrant in a desk drawer at home. Officers entered without a warrant after smelling evidence being destroyed and seized the document along with other papers. The court upheld the seizure because the officers reasonably believed the warrant would be destroyed and had not created the exigency.
Leah Lamb lost the original land warrant before presenting it at the land office. She filed a complaint establishing her entitlement, and the judge issued a duplicate land warrant to an authorized officer for delivery to her. The duplicate carried the same legal effect as the original.
Logan Lane's attorney miscalculated the filing deadline for perfecting a land warrant claim, causing Logan to lose the tract. The state bar declined to impose discipline because the single mistake did not demonstrate unfitness to practice, even though it supported a malpractice action.
Lucia Lopez obtained a land warrant directing delivery of a patent. Only a United States marshal was authorized to execute it by delivering the document to the proper land office. Service by any other person would have been invalid under the governing rule.
Liberty Trust held a land warrant for parcels the city needed for redevelopment. After the city took the land through eminent domain proceedings, the trust presented the warrant to establish its compensable interest and received the statutory award.
It proves the holder's entitlement to a described quantity of public land and supplies prima facie evidence of the facts it recites.
Supporting sources
The government issues the document after the applicant satisfies statutory steps. The holder then presents it to the land office to receive a patent.
Supporting sources
No. A court may issue a duplicate that carries the same legal effect when the holder establishes entitlement by complaint and affidavit.
…after they shall have been signed by the President and that the seal shall not be affixed before signature. The signature is a warrant for affixing the great seal and the great seal is only to be affixed to an instrument which is complete. The commission being signed, the subsequent duty of the Secretary is prescribed by…