Law Dictionary

cheat

French escheat: from fraud used by lords of manors to procure escheats. Cheats which are punishable at common law may be described to be deceitful practices in defrauding or endeavoring to defraud another of his known rights by means of some artful devices, contrary to the plain rules of common honesty. Hawkins, A cheat or fraud, indictable at common law, must be such as would affect the public, such as common prudence cannot guard against; as, using false weights and measures, or false tokens, or where there is a conspiracy to cheat. Technically, the offence is "false pretenses". spoken of one in relation to his vocation, the word is defamatory and actionable.

Source : William C. Anderson, A Dictionary of Law (1893)

Language : English

Return

Return to Law Dictionary Index