Also known as:reductions · reduce · reduced · reducing · charge reduction · sentence reduction
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A diminution in amount, size, or degree.
Sources & Authorities· 40 primary sources
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Cases
Statutes
Federal Rules
Uniform Acts
Model Codes
Common Law
How it applies
Common Examples
6
Provocation Insufficient for Manslaughter
Roger Ramirez stabbed the victim after the victim called him a coward during an argument. The prosecution charged murder. Because the provocation consisted only of mere words, the jury could not reduce the charge to voluntary manslaughter.
Buyer Bears Risk After Contract
Rosalind Reed contracted to buy a home from Ridgeway Partners. Before closing a fire destroyed the garage. Under the majority rule Rosalind could not avoid the contract or reduce the purchase price even though the improvement was gone.
Writing Treated as Complete Agreement
Robert Rivera and Rina Rahman signed a detailed purchase agreement that appeared complete on its face. When Robert later sought to introduce evidence of an alleged side term, the court treated the writing as an integrated agreement and refused to reduce the obligations stated in the document.
Judgment Discharge Treated as Release
Rhea Reynolds obtained a judgment against two joint tortfeasors. After one paid the full amount the court treated the discharge as equivalent to a release given before judgment and refused to reduce the remaining liability of the second tortfeasor.
Regulation Leaves Viable Uses
Roberto Reyes owned a historic building. A new preservation ordinance prohibited the most profitable redevelopment but left several economically viable uses intact. The court held that the regulation did not constitute a taking even though it reduced the property's market value.
Reduced-Fee Pro Bono Service
Reliance Insurance asked its outside counsel to represent a civic organization at a substantially reduced fee because standard rates would deplete the organization's resources. The representation counted toward the firm's pro bono obligation under the rule permitting delivery of legal services at a substantially reduced fee.
Common questions
Frequently Asked
6
What types of provocation fail to reduce murder to voluntary manslaughter at common law?+
Mere words, trivial battery, and provocation based on wrongs that occurred long in the past are legally inadequate. Only provocation that would arouse sudden and intense passion in an ordinary person and that actually provoked the defendant can support reduction.
Supporting sources
Under the majority rule of equitable conversion, may a buyer reduce the contract price when improvements are destroyed before closing?+
No. Risk of loss passes to the buyer at contract formation. The buyer therefore may not avoid the contract or reduce the price merely because the improvements were destroyed.
When is a writing treated as an integrated agreement that prevents reduction of its terms by other evidence?+
When the writing appears complete and specific on its face, it is presumed to be the final expression of the parties' agreement unless other evidence shows it was not intended as such.
Supporting sources
How does discharge of a judgment against one tortfeasor affect reduction of claims against others?+
The discharge is treated like a release or covenant not to sue given before judgment, so it does not automatically reduce the claim against remaining tortfeasors liable for the same harm.
Supporting sources
When do land-use regulations that reduce property value constitute a taking?+
Regulations that merely reduce value or prohibit the most beneficial use are not takings if they leave economically viable uses remaining. Courts then apply a multi-factor balancing test rather than finding a per se taking.
Supporting sources
What reduced-fee representations count toward a lawyer's pro bono obligation?+
Delivery of services at no fee or a substantially reduced fee to persons or organizations seeking to secure civil rights or to charitable and community groups qualifies when standard fees would significantly deplete the organization's resources.
Supporting sources
them to the condition of a subject race." See also Virginia v. Rives , 100 U.S. 313, 318 (1880); Ex parte Virginia , 100 U.S. 339, 344-345 (1880). [^maj-7]: The doctrine apparently…
the Landmark itself to the status of a curiosity. “Landmarks cannot be divorced from their settings—particularly when the setting is a dramatic and integral part of the original…
reducing
the risk that a woman may elect an abortion, only to discover later, with devastating psychological consequences, that her decision was not fully informed. If the information the State…
when, as here, the notice required does not even name those whose attention it is supposed to attract, and does not inform acquaintances who might call it to attention. In weighing its…
TortsNegligence · Limitations on liability and special rules of liabilityUBEFoundational