Gale Encyclopedia of American Law Volume 1 P6 fully illuminates today's leading cases, major statutes, legal terms and concepts, notable persons involved with the law, important documents and more. Legal issues are fully discussed in easy-to-understand language, including such high-profile topics as the Americans with Disabilities Act, capital punishment, domestic violence, gay and lesbian rights, physician-assisted suicide and thousands more. | 38 ABSTRACT OF TITLE An abstract comprises or concentrates in itself the essential qualities of a larger thing or of several things in a short abbreviated form. It differs from a transcript which is a verbatim copy of the thing itself and is more comprehensive. CROSS REFERENCE Abstract of Title. ABSTRACT OF TITLE A condensed history taken from public records or documents of the ownership of a piece of land. An abstract of title or title abstract briefly summarizes the various activities affecting ownership of a parcel of land. When a person or business agrees to purchase real estate that person or business arranges for an examination of the history of the property s title. This examination is known as a title search. A title search is conducted to determine that the seller of the property in fact owns the property and has a free-and-clear title. A free-and-clear title has no clouds on it which means that no person or business other than the seller has an interest in or claim to the property. The process of determining the precise ownership of a piece of land by searching an abstract is complex and laborious. Often the title abstract does not contain every transaction or proceeding that may affect ownership of the land. The search conductor or abstractor usually a trained professional must verify that the abstract is complete by reviewing recent certifications that the abstract is correct checking for gaps in dates and certification numbers and ensuring that a proper legal description appears with each entry. The abstractor conducts a credit and finances check on all the names appearing in the abstract to see if any of the parties has filed for bankruptcy or has incurred other debts that may have caused a creditor to file a lien against the property toward payment of the debt. An abstractor must refer to many different sources to verify that the title to a parcel of land is true and correct. The abstractor verifies the original government survey which should include
