Sui generis (English pronunciation (IPA): /ˌsuːiˈdʒɛnərɪs/, roughly "SOO-ee JEN-er-ihs", Latin pronunciation: /ˌsuːiˈgeneris/) is a Neo-Latin expression, literally meaning of its own kind/genus or unique in its characteristics. The term New Latin or Neo-Latin is used to describe a form the Latin language used between the end of the Medieval Latin period (c A genus (plural genera from Γένος Latin genus "descent family type gender" is a low-level Taxonomic ^[1] The expression was effectively created by scholastic philosophy to indicate an idea, an entity or a reality that cannot be included in a wider concept. Scholasticism was the dominant form of theology and philosophy in the Latin West in the Middle Ages, particularly in the 12th 13th and 14th centuries Philosophy is the study of general problems concerning matters such as existence knowledge truth beauty justice validity mind and language In the structure "genus → species" a species that heads its own genus is sui generis. This does not, however, mean that all genera with only a single member are composed of sui generis species. It is only if the genus was specifically created to refer to that one species, with no other known examples, that the species is sui generis. If the species is alone merely due to extinction, as in the case of the Homo genus, the surviving species is not sui generis, because other members of the genus are known, even if they are not currently alive.

Legal applications

In law, it is a term of art used to identify a legal classification that exists independently of other categorizations because of its uniqueness or due to the specific creation of an entitlement or obligation. Law is a system of rules enforced through a set of Institutions used as an instrument to underpin civil obedience politics economics and society Technical terminology is the specialized Vocabulary of a field Courts have used the term in describing cooperative apartment corporations, mostly because this form of housing is considered real property for some purposes and personal property for other purposes. The Supreme Court of the State of New York is New York State 's Trial court, and is of General jurisdiction. In the Common law, real property (or realty) refers to one of the two main classes of Property, the other class being Personal property ( Personal property is a type of Property. In the Common law systems personal property may also be called chattels or personalty. In intellectual property there are rights which are known as being sui generis to owners of a small class of works, such as intellectual property rights in mask works, ship hull designs, databases, or plant varieties. Intellectual property ( IP) is a legal field that refers to creations of the mind such as musical literary and artistic works inventions and symbols names A mask work is a two or three-dimensional layout or topography of an Integrated circuit (IC or "chip" i A hull is the body of a Ship or Boat. It is a central concept in floating vessels as it provides the Buoyancy that keeps the vessel from sinking In European Union law, a database right is a legal right introduced in 1996. See also Variety (botany A "plant variety " is a Legal term, following the UPOV Convention When referring to case citations and authorities, lawyers (and Judges) may refer to an authority cited as being 'sui generis', meaning in that context, it is one confined (or special) to its own facts, and therefore may not be of broader application.

Statutory

In statutory interpretation, it refers to the problem of giving meaning to groups of words where one of the words is ambiguous or inherently unclear. Statutory interpretation is the process of interpreting and applying Legislation. For example, in criminal law, a statute might require a mens rea element of "unlawful and malicious" intent. The term criminal law, sometimes called penal law, refers to any of various bodies of rules in different Jurisdictions whose common characteristic is the potential In Criminal law, mens rea the Latin term for "guilty mind" is usually one of the necessary elements of a Crime. Whereas the word "malicious" is well-understood, the word "unlawful" in this context is less clear. Hence, it must be given a meaning of the "same kind" as the word of established meaning.

This is particularly the case when the two or more words are conjoined, linked by the word "and", as opposed to placed in a disjunctive relationship, linked by the word "or". The interpretation of the two or more words might be different depending on the circumstances. Courts sometimes have to attribute a conjunctive (X and Y) intention to the legislature even though the list is disjunctive (X or Y) because, otherwise, no overall interpretation of the law in question would make sense. A legislature is a type of representative Deliberative assembly with the power to create amend and change Laws The law created by a legislature is called Legislation

Town planning

In British town planning law, certain uses of land are labeled sui generis to indicate that they are not covered by a 'Use Class' – effectively in a class of their own. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Change of use of land within a Use Class does not require planning permission; however, changing between certain Use Classes, or any change of use of sui generis land, requires planning permission. Examples of sui generis use (identified in the Use Classes Order 1987) include theatres, amusement arcades, laundrettes, taxi or vehicle hire businesses, petrol filling stations, scrapyards, nightclubs, motor car showrooms, retail warehouses, clubs and hostels. The Town and Country Planning (Use Classes Order 1987 is a Statutory Instrument which revoked and replaced the Town and Country Planning (Use Classes Order 1972 as amended Theatre (or theater, see spelling differences) is the branch of the Performing arts defined by Bernard Beckerman as what "occurs when one Amusement is the state of experiencing humorous and usually entertaining events or situations and is associated with Enjoyment, A self-service laundry is a facility where Clothes are washed and dried A taxicab, also taxi or cab, is a type of Public transport for a single passenger or small group of passengers typically for a non-shared ride A car rental, rent-a-car or car hire agency is a company that rents Automobiles for short periods of time (ranging from a few hours to a few weeks A filling station, fueling station, gas station, service station, petrol station, or gasbar, Retail Outlet A wrecking yard, Auto Recycling yard auto salvage yard, wrecker's yard or breakers yard, (sometimes also known as a junkyard A nightclub (or "night club" or "club" is a drinking, dancing, and entertainment venue which does its primary business after dark A car dealership or vehicle local distribution is a business that sells new cars and/or Used cars at the Retail level based on a dealership contract Hostels provide budget-oriented accommodation where guests can rent a bed, sometimes a Bunk bed in a Dormitory and share a bathroom

Aboriginal law

The term has also been used in the context of Canadian aboriginal law to describe the nature of aboriginal title. Aboriginal title is a Common law property interest in land It has been recognised in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the United States

Political science

In political science, the unparalleled development of the European Union as compared to other international organizations has led to its designation as a sui generis geopolitical entity. Political science is a branch of Social sciences that deals with the theory and practice of Politics and the description and analysis of Political systems The European Union ( EU) is a political and economic union of twenty-seven member states, located primarily in International Organization is a peer-reviewed Academic journal that covers the entire field of International affairs. Geopolitics is the study that analyzes Geography, History and Social science with reference to Spatial politics and patterns at various scales There has been widespread debate over the legal nature of the EU given its mixture of intergovernmental and supranational elements, with the organisation thus possessing some characteristics common to confederal and federal entities. Supranationalism is a method of decision-making in political communities wherein power is democratically entrusted to independent experienced appointed personalities or to representatives A confederation is a group of empowered states or communities usually created by treaty but often later adopting a common constitution

A similar case which has led to the use of the label sui generis is the unique relationship between France and New Caledonia, since the legal status of New Caledonia can aptly be said to lie "somewhere between an overseas collectivity and a sovereign nation". This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. For the former North American fur-trading district see New Caledonia (Canada, and for the Scottish colony in Panama see Darien scheme. The French overseas collectivities ( collectivités d'outre-mer or COM) like the French regions, themselves are first-order Administrative divisions Sovereignty is the exclusive Right to control a Government, a country, a people or oneself Whereas there are perhaps other examples of such a status for other disputed or dependent territories, this arrangement is certainly unique within the French Republic. This is a list of extant Territorial disputes around the world A dependent territory dependent area or dependency is a territory that does not possess full political Independence or Sovereignty as a

The old Holy Roman Empire may also fit under this category for its unique organization and place in European history. The Holy Roman Empire ( HRE; German Heiliges Römisches Reich (HRR, Latin Sacrum Romanum Imperium (SRI was a union of territories in The history of Europe describes the passage of time from humans inhabiting the European continent to the present day

In local government, a sui generis entity is one which does not fit with the general scheme of local governance of a country. For example in England, the City of London and the Isles of Scilly are the two sui generis localities, as their forms of local government are both very different from those of elsewhere in the country (for historical and geographical reasons). England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland For London as a whole see the main article London. The City of London is a geographically

Sociology

In the sociology of Emile Durkheim, sui generis is used to illustrate his theories on social existence. Sociology (from Latin: socius "companion" and the suffix -ology "the study of" from Greek λόγος lógos "knowledge" Émile Durkheim ( April 15, 1858 – November 15, 1917) was a French Sociologist whose contributions were instrumental Durkheim states that the main object of sociology is to study social facts. These social facts can only be explained by other social facts. They have a meaning of their own and cannot be reduced to psychological or biological factors. Social facts have a meaning of their own, they are 'sui generis'. Durkheim states that when one takes an organization and replaces some individuals with some others, the essence of the organization does not (necessarily) change. It can happen, for example, that over the course of a few decades, the entire staff of an organisation is replaced, while the organisation retains its distinctive character. Durkheim does not limit this thought to organisation, but extends it to the whole society: he maintains that society, as it was there before any living individual was born, is independent of all individuals. His sui generis (its closest English meaning in this sense being 'independent') society will furthermore continue its existence after the individual ceases to interact with it.

See also

• Judicial activism

References

External links

• Changes of Use of Buildings and Land (Office of the Deputy Prime Minister)