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prin·ci·pal 1 /'prin-sə-pəl/ adj1: being the main or most important, consequential, or influentialtheir principal place of businessthe principal obligor2: of, relating to, or constituting principal or a principalthe principal amount of the loanprincipal 2 n1: a participant in an action or transaction esp. having control or authoritythe principal s of a business: asa: one who engages another to act for him or her subject to his or her general control or instruction: one from whom an agent derives authority to act compare fiduciaryb: one who commits a crime or instigates, encourages, or assists another to commit it esp. when constructively or actually present see also accessory 1principal in the first degree: a principal under common law who intentionally commits and is actually or constructively present at the commission of a crimeprincipal in the second degree: a principal under common law who aids, encourages, or commands another to commit a crime and is actually or constructively present when it is committedc: the person primarily liable on a legal obligation or one who will ultimately bear the burden because of a duty to indemnify another as distinguished from one (as an endorser, surety, or guarantor) who is secondarily liable2: a capital sum earning interest, due as a debt, or used as a fundshall receive the income from the trust until age 18, and thereafter the principalpayments shall be applied first to interest and then to principal; also: the main body of an estate, devise, or bequest
Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam-Webster. 1996.
- principal
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I
adjective
cardinal, chief, controlling, dominant, essential, first, foremost, hegemonic, hegemonical, highest, leading, main, most considerable, most important, most powerful, outstanding, paramount, predominant, preeminent, prevailing, primal, primary, prime, primus, princeps, principalis, prominent, ruling, stellar, supereminent, supreme
associated concepts: principal activity, principal contract, principal contractor, principal obligation, principal place of business, principal sum, principal wrongdoing
foreign phrases:
- Omne principale trah it ad se accessorium. — Every principal thing draws the accessory to itself- Quae accessionum locum obtinent, extinguuntur cum principales res peremptae fuerint. — When the principal thing is destroyed, those things which are accessory to it are also destroyed- Sublato principali, tollitur adjunctum. — By the removal of the principal thing, the adjunct is also takenII (capital sum) noun assets, assets in hand, capital, caput, circulating capital, economic resources, fixed capital, fund, funds, gross amount, holdings, invested sum, main body, material assets, money, nummi, original sum, principal part, property, resources, sors, sum, sum total, tangible assets, totality, wealth, whole, working capital III (director) noun boss, chief, chief actor, chief authority, chief executive, chief party, chieftain, commandant, commander, controller, directing head, director, employer, engager of services, executive, executive officer, foreperson, governor, head, head person, magister, manager, master, overlooker, overseer, owner, person in authority, person in charge, proprietor, senior, superintendent, superior, supervisor, taskmaster associated concepts: partially disclosed principal, principal in the first degree, undisclosed principal foreign phrases:- Nullus dicitur accessorius post feloniam, sed ille qui novit principalem feloniam feclsse, et ilium receptavlt et comfortavit. — No one is called an "accessory" after the fact but the one who knew the principal had committed a felony, and who received and comforted him- Nullus dicitur felo principalis nisi actor, aut qui praesens est, abettans aut auxilians ad feioniam faciendam. — No one is called a principal felon except the party actually committing the felony, or the person who is present, aiding and abetting in its commission- Res accessoria sequitur rem principalem. — An accessory follows the principal- Qui per alium facit per seipsum facere videtur. — He who acts through another is deemed as having acted himself- Ubl non est principalis, non potest esse accessorius. — Where there can be no principal, there cannot be an accessoryIV index accomplice, assets, cardinal (basic), cash, central (essential), chairman, chief, corpus, critical (crucial), director, dominant, fundamental, important (significant), leading (ranking first), major, material (important), necessary (required), noteworthy, outstanding (prominent), paramount, predominant, primary, prime (most valuable), professional (stellar), prominent, protagonist, salient, stellar, substantive, superlative, vital
Burton's Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006
- principal
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adj.Most important; main.n.(1) The person with the highest authority in some organization; the chief, such as the principal of a school.(2) A person who directs an agent to act on his or her behalf.(3) A person who commits a crime; the person directly responsible for a crime.(4) A sum of money invested or borrowed, on which interest is paid or charged.
The Essential Law Dictionary. — Sphinx Publishing, An imprint of Sourcebooks, Inc. Amy Hackney Blackwell. 2008.
- principal
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1) In commercial law, the total amount of a loan, not including any capitalized fees or interest.2) When creating a power of attorney or other legal document, the person who appoints an attorney-in-fact or agent to act on his or her behalf.3) In the law of trusts, the property of the trust, as opposed to the income generated by that property. The principal is also known as the trust corpus (that's Latin for "body").4) In criminal law, the main perpetrator of a crime.Category: Business, LLCs & CorporationsCategory: Criminal LawCategory: Personal Finance & RetirementCategory: Small Claims Court & LawsuitsCategory: Wills, Trusts & Estates → Living Wills & Medical Powers of AttorneyCategory: Wills, Trusts & Estates → Living Trusts & Avoiding ProbateCategory: Wills, Trusts & Estates → Financial Powers of Attorney
Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary. Gerald N. Hill, Kathleen Thompson Hill. 2009.
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1 adj. Of greatest importance.2 n. One who authorizes another to act in his or her behalf as an agent; any person involved in the commission of a criminal act.@ disclosed principalA principal whose identity is shared by his or her agent with the third party.Compare undisclosed principal=>> principal.@ principal in the first degreeThe actual perpetrator of a crime.Compare principal in the second degree=>> principal.@ principal in the second degreeSomeone who assists in some way the principal in the first degree.Compare principal in the first degree=>> principal.@ undisclosed principalA principal whose identity is kept secret by his agent. Both the undisclosed principal and the authorized agent are liable for fulfilling the provisions of a contract.Compare disclosed principal=>> principal.@
Webster's New World Law Dictionary. Susan Ellis Wild. 2000.
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A source of authority; a sum of a debt or obligation producing interest; the head of a school. In an agency relationship, the principal is the person who gives authority to another, called an agent, to act on his or her behalf. In criminal law, the principal is the chief actor or perpetrator of a crime; those who aid, abet, counsel, command, or induce the commission of a crime may also be principals. In investments and banking, the principal refers to the person for whom a broker executes an order; it may also mean the capital invested or the face amount of a loan.
Dictionary from West's Encyclopedia of American Law. 2005.
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A source of authority; a sum of a debt or obligation producing interest; the head of a school. In an agency relationship, the principal is the person who gives authority to another, called an agent, to act on his or her behalf. In criminal law, the principal is the chief actor or perpetrator of a crime; those who aid, abet, counsel, command, or induce the commission of a crime may also be principals. In investments and banking, the principal refers to the person for whom a broker executes an order; it may also mean the capital invested or the face amount of a loan.
Short Dictionary of (mostly American) Legal Terms and Abbreviations.
- principal
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n.1) main person in a business.2) employer, the person hiring and directing employees (agents) to perform his/her/its business. It is particularly important to determine who is the principal since he/she/it is responsible for the acts of agents in the "scope of employment" under the doctrine of respondeat superior.3) in criminal law, the main perpetrator (organizer and active committer) of a crime, as distinguished from an "accessory" who helps the principal in some fashion. The criminal principal is usually the person who originates the idea of committing the crime and/or directly carries it out, and is more likely to be charged with a higher degree of the crime, and receive a stiffer prison sentence.4) adj. chief, leading, highest.
Law dictionary. EdwART. 2013.
