estop

A judge estops the company from proceeding with the construction.

Definition

Verb (Law):
- To preclude or prevent: "estop" means to bar or stop someone from asserting a fact or claim that is inconsistent with a previous position or action, especially in legal proceedings. This is a technical legal term derived from the principle of estoppel.

Usage Examples

Legal context:
- The defendant was estopped from denying the contract's validity because he had previously accepted its terms. (The court prevented the defendant from making a contradictory claim.)
- By remaining silent for years, the landlord is estopped from evicting the tenant now. (The landlord is legally barred from taking action due to prior inaction.)

Advanced Usage

"to be estopped by record": to be prevented from denying a fact that has been formally recorded in a court judgment.
- The company was estopped by record from relitigating the issue. (The court's earlier decision blocked further argument.)
"to be estopped in pais": to be estopped by conduct or circumstance, not by a formal record.
- He was estopped in pais because his behavior led others to rely on his statements. (His actions created a legal bar.)

Variants and Related Words

Estoppel (n): a legal principle that prevents a person from asserting something contrary to what is implied by a previous action or statement.
- The doctrine of estoppel applies when one party's conduct leads another to believe certain facts. (The legal rule bars contradictory claims.)
Estop is the verb form; estoppel is the noun form.

Synonyms

Phrasal Verbs

Estop from: (legal) to prevent someone from doing something.
- The court estopped her from selling the property. (The court barred her from the sale.)

Related Idioms

"Estop by silence": (legal) to be prevented from asserting a right because of failure to speak when required.
- Your silence estopped you from later objecting to the plan. (Not speaking created a legal bar against you.)