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Legitimacy - Dictionary Definition and Overview |
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Legitimacy : (noun)
1: lawfulness by virtue of being authorized or in accordance
with law [ant: illegitimacy]
2: undisputed credibility [syn: authenticity, genuineness]
Based on WordNet 2.0
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Legitimacy : \Le*git"i*ma*cy\ (-[i^]*m[.a]*s[y^]), n. [See
Legitimate, a.]
The state, or quality, of being legitimate, or in conformity
with law; hence, the condition of having been lawfully
begotten, or born in wedlock.
The doctrine of Divine Right, which has now come back
to us, like a thief from transportation, under the
alias of Legitimacy. --Macaulay.
Based on Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
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LEGITIMACY. The state of being born in wedlock; that is, in a lawful manner.
2. Marriage is considered by all civilized nations as the only source
of legitimacy; the qualities of husband and wife must be possessed by the
parents in order to make the offspring legitimate; and furthermore the
marriage must be lawful, for if it is void ab initio, the children who may
be the offspring of such marriage are not legitimate. 1 Phil. Ev. Index,
h.t.; Civ. Code L. art. 203 to 216.
3. In Virginia, it is provided by statute of 1787, "that the issue of
marriages deemed null in law, shall nevertheless be legitimate." 3 Hen. &
Munf. 228, n.
4. A conclusive, presumption ofLegitimacy : arises from marriage and
cohabitation; and proof of the mother's irregularities will not destroy this
presumption: pater est quem nuptiae demonstrant. To rebut this presumption,
circumstances must be shown which render it impossible that the husband
should be the father, as impotency and the like. 3 Bouv. Inst. n. 300-2.
Vide Bastard; Bastardy; Paternity; Pregnancy.
Based on Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
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