Also known as: clear & unequivocal · clear and unambiguous
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A standard requiring that a manifestation of intent or waiver be expressed without ambiguity or doubt. The requirement ensures that the party receiving the manifestation has no reasonable basis to believe further negotiation or clarification is needed before rights are altered or obligations arise.
Cedar Creek Farms mailed a detailed catalog listing prices for its produce to multiple buyers. When Connor Clark responded by ordering a large quantity at the listed price, Cedar Creek refused to ship, claiming the catalog was only an invitation to negotiate. Clark sued for breach. The court held that the catalog lacked any language committing the farm to sell at the stated prices without further assent, so no offer existed.
After arrest, Christian Coleman told officers he might want a lawyer but then answered questions about the crime. The prosecution sought to introduce his statements. The court suppressed them because Coleman never made a clear and unequivocal request for counsel, allowing continued questioning until he did.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
In a delinquency proceeding, Cameron Cruz admitted to the charged conduct without being told he could remain silent. The court refused to use the admission against him because the record contained no clear and unequivocal evidence that he understood he was not required to speak.
The Boy Scouts revoked an adult leader's membership after learning of his sexual orientation. The leader sued under a state public-accommodations law. The court held that the organization's policy against admitting gay members constituted a clear and unequivocal message of exclusion that triggered First Amendment protection.
A corrections officer carried a loaded handgun into a bar, believing his status exempted him from the licensing statute. Charged with unlawful possession, he raised mistake of law. The court rejected the defense because the statute was settled and plain, providing no basis for a clear and unequivocal claim that the officer lacked guilty intent.
A District of Columbia resident sought to register a handgun for home self-defense but was barred by the city's total prohibition. The resident challenged the ban. The court held that the Second Amendment confers an individual right whose core protection is clear and unequivocal when the law destroys the ability to keep an operable firearm in the home.
Police may continue questioning until the suspect makes an unambiguous request. Any resulting statements remain admissible provided no coercion occurred.
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No. Courts require an express statutory provision or contractual clause that clearly and unequivocally consents to suit in the other state's courts before immunity is lost.
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An advertisement constitutes an offer only when it contains language of commitment or invites immediate action without further negotiation. Price lists and catalogs ordinarily lack this clarity.
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An admission may be used against the juvenile only if the record shows without ambiguity that the juvenile understood both the right to remain silent and that no penalty would follow from exercising it.
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…must be observed. At the outset, if a person in custody is to be subjected to interrogation, he must first be informed in clear and unequivocal terms that he has the right to remain silent. For those unaware of the privilege, the warning is needed simply to make them aware of it—the threshold requirement for an intelligent decision…