Abstract (law)

The Abstract of Title, used in real estate transactions, is the more common form of abstract. An abstract of title lists all the owners of a piece of land, a house, or a building before it came into possession of the present owner. The abstract also records all deeds, wills, mortgages, and other documents that affect ownership of the property. An abstract describes a chain of transfers from owner to owner and any agreements by former owners that are binding on later owners.[1]

A clear title to property is one that clearly states any obligation in the deed to the property. It reveals no breaksin the chain of legal ownership. After the records of the property have been traced and the title has been found clear, it is sometimes guaranteed, or insured. In a few states, a different system of insuring title of real properties provides for registration of a clear title with public authorities. After this is accomplished, no abstract of title is necessary.

In the context of patent law and specifically in prior art searches, searching through abstracts is a common way to find relevant prior art document to question to novelty or inventive step (or non-obviousness in United States patent law) of an invention. Under United States patent law, the abstract may be called "Abstract of the Disclosure".[2][3]

Certain government bureaucracies, such as a department of motor vehicles will issue an abstract of a completed transaction or an updated record intended to serve as a proof of compliance with some administrative requirement. This is often done in advance of the update of reporting databases and/or the issuance of official documents.

• Property abstract

• World Book encyclopedia 1988

• Rule 8 PCT, defining the requirements regarding the abstract in an international application filed under Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT)
• Article 85 EPC and Rule 47 EPC (previously Rule 33 EPC 1973), defining the abstract-related requirements in a European patent application