Could anyone define some legal terms?

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What does it mean when a document merges and when a document survives? And while I thought I once knew the meaning of "unclean hands," I am not certain.

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POM :
you may find the link helpful (or watch "jugde judy" Shocked

, she has explained "unclean hands" on some occasions ) .
hbg

Quote:

unclean hands
n. a legal doctrine which is a defense to a complaint, which states that a party who is asking for a judgment cannot have the help of the court if he/she has done anything unethical in relation to the subject of the lawsuit. Thus, if a defendant can show the plaintiff had "unclean hands," the plaintiff's complaint will be dismissed or the plaintiff will be denied judgment. Unclean hands is a common "affirmative defense" pleaded by defendants and must be proved by the defendant. Example: Hank Hardnose sues Grace Goodenough for breach of contract for failure to pay the full amount for construction of an addition to her house. Goodenough proves that Hardnose had shown her faked estimates from subcontractors to justify his original bid to Goodenough.

LEGAL DEFINITIONS

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Clean hands is actually a term from equity jurisdiction. In most states, equity has merged with law but in some (NJ and DE are two), they aren't merged or not completely merged and therefore a remedy or defense offered at law might not be offered at equity and vice versa.

Definitions

I'm not sure of the other terms, I'm guessing that the context is contracts, wills or a bill of divorcement? Context would be very helpful.

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POM and i will have to watch "judge judy" more often !
perhaps we'll qualify for a legal degree after watching her until her retirement - hasn't she just signed another 5 year , multi-million dollar contract ?
hbg