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caveat emptor

  (ĕmp'tôr') pronunciation
n.

The axiom or principle in commerce that the buyer alone is responsible for assessing the quality of a purchase before buying.

[From Latin caveat ēmptor, let the buyer beware : caveat, third person sing. present subjunctive of cavēre, to beware + ēmptor, buyer.]


 
 
Investment Dictionary: Caveat Emptor

Another way to say, "let the buyer beware."

Investopedia Says:
In other words, consumers need to know their rights and be vigilant in avoiding scams.

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Insurance Dictionary: Caveat Emptor

Latin expression meaning "let the buyer beware." The purchaser buys a product or service at his or her own risk. This principle has been modified significantly as it relates to an Insurance Policy. See also Adhesion Insurance Contract; Free Examination "free Look" Period.

 
Real Estate Dictionary: Caveat Emptor

"let the buyer beware." The buyer must examine the goods or property and buy at his own risk, except for Latent Defects.
Example: Often a property is offered As Is with no expressed or implied guarantee of quality or condition. When entering such transactions, caveat emptor is a worthy admonishment.

 
Law Encyclopedia: Caveat Emptor
This entry contains information applicable to United States law only.

[Latin, Let the buyer be- ware.] A warning that notifies a buyer that the goods he or she is buying are " as is," or subject to all defects.

When a sale is subject to this warning the purchaser assumes the risk that the product might be either defective or unsuitable to his or her needs.

This rule is not designed to shield sellers who engage in fraud or bad faith dealing by making false or misleading representations about the quality or condition of a particular product. It merely summarizes the concept that a purchaser must examine, judge, and test a product considered for purchase himself or herself.

The modern trend in laws protecting consumers, however, has minimized the importance of this rule. Although the buyer is still required to make a reasonable inspection of goods upon purchase, increased responsibilities have been placed upon the seller, and the doctrine of caveat venditor (Latin for "let the seller beware") has become more prevalent. Generally, there is a legal presumption that a seller makes certain warranties unless the buyer and the seller agree otherwise. One such warranty is the implied warranty of merchantability. If a person buys soap, for example, there is an implied warranty that it will clean; if a person buys skis, there is an implied warranty that they will be safe to use on the slopes.

A seller who is in the business of regularly selling a particular type of goods has still greater responsibilities in dealing with an average customer. A person purchasing antiques from an antique dealer, or jewelry from a jeweler, is justified in his or her reliance on the expertise of the seller.

If both the buyer and the seller are negotiating from equal bargaining positions, however, the doctrine of caveat emptor would apply.

See: consumer protection.

 
Economics Dictionary: Caveat emptor
(kav-ee-aht, kah-vee-aht emp-tawr)

Latin for “Let the buyer beware.” It means that a customer should be cautious and alert to the possibility of being cheated: “Caveat emptor is the first rule of buying a used car.”

 
Latin Phrase: Caveat Emptor

Let the buyer beware

 
Wikipedia: caveat emptor


Caveat emptor is Latin for "Let the buyer beware". Generally caveat emptor is the property law doctrine that controls the sale of real property after the date of closing.

Explanation

Under the doctrine of caveat emptor, the buyer could not recover from the seller for defects on the property that rendered the property unfit for ordinary purposes. The only exception was if the seller actively concealed latent defects. The modern trend in the US, however, is one of the Implied Warranty of Fitness that applies only to the sale of new residential housing by a builder-seller and the rule of Caveat Emptor applies to all other sale situations (i.e. homeowner to buyer).(See Stambovsky v. Ackley, 572 N.Y.S.2d 672 (N.Y. App. 1991)) Many other jurisdictions have provisions similar to this.

Before statutory law, the buyer had no warranty of the quality of goods. In many jurisdictions, the law now requires that goods must be of "merchantable quality". However, this implied warranty can be difficult to enforce, and may not apply to all products. Hence, buyers are still advised to be cautious.

In addition to the quality of the merchandise, this phrase also applies to the return policy. In most jurisdictions, there is no legal requirement for the vendor to provide a refund or exchange. In many cases, the vendor will not provide a refund but will provide a credit. In the case of software, movies and other copyrighted material many vendors will only do a direct exchange for another copy of the exact same title. Most stores require proof of purchase and impose time limits on exchanges or refunds. However, some larger chain stores will do exchanges or refunds at any time with or without proof of purchase- although they usually require a form of picture ID and place quantity and/or dollar limitations on such returns.

Laidlaw v. Organ, a decision written in 1817 by Chief Justice John Marshall, is believed by scholars to have been the first U.S. Supreme Court case which laid down the rule of caveat emptor in U.S. law.

This phrase has given rise to many informal variations, such as caveat reader (properly expressed in Latin as caveat lector).

Caveat emptor has also been used by software documentors to entitle their collection of software functioning oddities or stumbling blocks in usage.

In the late 1960s, Gary Null was the editor of one of the nation's first consumer health activist publications, called Caveat Emptor, which was in print for over ten years.

Caveat venditor

Caveat venditor is Latin for "let the seller beware". It is a counter to caveat emptor, and suggests that sellers too can be deceived in a market transaction. This forces the seller to take responsibility for the product, and discourages sellers from selling products of unreasonable quality.

In the landmark case of MacPherson v. Buick Motor Co. (1916), New York Court Appeals Judge Benjamin N. Cardozo established that privity of duty is no longer required in regards to a lawsuit for product liability against the seller. This case is predominantly regarded as the origin of caveat venditor as it pertains to modern tort law in US.

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Copyrights:

Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Investment Dictionary. Copyright ©2000, Investopedia.com - Owned and Operated by Investopedia Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Insurance Dictionary. Dictionary of Insurance Terms. Copyright © 2000 by Barron's Educational Series, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Real Estate Dictionary. Dictionary of Real Estate Terms. Copyright © 2004 by Barron's Educational Series, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Law Encyclopedia. West's Encyclopedia of American Law. Copyright © 1998 by The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Economics Dictionary. The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Edited by E.D. Hirsch, Jr., Joseph F. Kett, and James Trefil. Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.  Read more
Answers Corporation Latin Phrase. © 1999-2008 by Answers Corporation. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Caveat emptor" Read more

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