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Simple English definitions for legal terms
reasonable
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A quick definition of reasonable:
Term: Reasonable
Definition: Reasonable means doing things that make sense and are fair in a given situation. For example, if someone is driving a car, they should drive carefully and follow the rules of the road. This is called "reasonable care." In other situations, like when deciding how much to pay someone for their work, it's important to be fair and pay them a reasonable amount. The word "reasonable" is used in many different areas of the law to help determine what is fair and what is not.
A more thorough explanation:
Definition: Reasonable means fair, logical, and appropriate for the situation. It can refer to things like reasonable care, cause, compensation, and doubt in a criminal trial. For example, in a negligence case, the reasonable person standard is used to determine if someone acted with enough care to avoid being held responsible for an accident.
Another example is in tax law, where the Internal Revenue Code allows for a "reasonable allowance" for salaries or compensation for personal services. This means that businesses can deduct a reasonable amount of money for paying their employees.
Reasonable can also be used to determine liability in other areas, like securities fraud. In the case of Basic v. Levinson, the court used a "reasonable investor" standard to decide if a company's failure to disclose information was significant enough to be considered fraud.
Overall, reasonable means doing what is fair and appropriate for the situation. It helps people make decisions and avoid being held responsible for things that are beyond their control.