Also known as: inchoately · incipient
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
2 senses
A condition of being partially completed or imperfectly formed. In criminal law the term identifies preliminary offenses such as attempt, conspiracy, and solicitation that remain incomplete until the target crime occurs.
An interest in property that has not yet ripened into full legal title.
Each sense below has its own examples, sources, and questions.
A condition of being partially completed or imperfectly formed. In criminal law the term identifies preliminary offenses such as attempt, conspiracy, and solicitation that remain incomplete until the target crime occurs.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
An interest in property that has not yet ripened into full legal title.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Israel Irving and Idina Iverson agreed to divert electronics from a cargo ship. Idina later completed the theft alone. Under the merger doctrine the completed felony absorbed the preliminary agreement, so Israel could not be convicted separately on the inchoate conspiracy count.
Merger occurs once the defendant or another actor completes the principal felony. The preliminary misdemeanor is absorbed and separate conviction on the inchoate charge is barred.
Supporting sources
No. Completion by any actor connected to the inchoate conduct through the original agreement or solicitation is sufficient to trigger merger.
Supporting sources
Ibrahim Iqbal began driving maintenance trucks across a neighbor's path in 2005. After selling the benefited parcel to Infinity Bank in 2015 the bank continued the identical weekly crossings. The periods of use by successive owners could be added together because the transfer carried the inchoate servitude forward.
Yes. Successive users may add their periods together if there is a transfer of either the inchoate servitude or the benefited estate.
Supporting sources