Definition of "Ad litem"

Pam & Jason Maples<br>(The Maples Team) real estate agent

Written by

Pam & Jason Maples
(The Maples Team)
elite badge icon

Grinnell Realty

Need to know the Ad Litem definition after coming across this weird term?

Ad litem is short for “Guardian Ad Litem” or “Attorney Ad litem”, a legal term that refers to the person appointed by the court to investigate what results would be of best interest to the child (or a grownup that is legally incapacitated of representing himself) in the lawsuit at hand. The Guardian Ad Litem (GAL), then, represents that person and fights for that outcome.

The most common use for it is in divorce lawsuits. But in Real Estate it can also have many uses:

  • Say a kid becomes an orphan – a GAL will be appointed to act on his or her behalf in court regarding the kid’s rights to inheritance.
  • If a situation arises for a non-verbal person with special needs and no relatives that leads to a Homes for the disabled lawsuit, the court will also appoint a GAL.
  • It can even be used in a property litigation: to act on behalf of an estate if the owners are unavailable or unwilling to do so.

Lastly, in case you’re wondering: The root of the Ad Litem definition comes from Latin. The word Ad Litem means “for the suit”, or “for the proceeding”.

Real Estate Tips:

Have a Real Estate Agent as your guardian, protecting your best interests at all times!

image of a real estate dictionary page

Have a question or comment?

We're here to help.

*** Your email address will remain confidential.
 

 

Popular Real Estate Terms

Degree of construction of residential property measured in number of units or dollar value. ...

Amount charged for each unit of rental property. An example of a unit might be square footage of space or an apartment. ...

Any lease with a specific starting time and a specific ending time. ...

Written agreement between two or more parties to extend the terms of a document. ...

In general terms, a licensee means a person or legal entity who has received authorization or permission to perform a particular activity through another party (the licensor in our case.) ...

Also know as Fannie Mae, the FNMA accept bids from approved lenders as to the amount, price and terms wish to sell Fannie Mae. Upon deciding how much money it will spend during a given time ...

A lender can be a private individual, a private or public group, or an institution that loans funds to a person or business that the lendee would later repay with interest in most cases. In ...

A fiduciary intermingling a clients funds or one who is entrusted with funds and groups them with those of his own. This practice is considered a breach of a fiduciary relationship and a ...

Same as term resale proceeds: Net amount received when property is sold. It equals the selling price less outstanding mortgage balance less all costs incurred in connection with the sale. ...

Popular Real Estate Questions