is the Latin word for "third", or "concerning the third". The term is used in

contract law A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties that creates, defines, and governs mutual rights and obligations between them. A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to tran ...

to refer to an interested third party not

privy Privy is an old-fashioned term for an outdoor toilet, often known as an outhouse and by many other names. Privy may also refer to: * Privy council, a body that advises the head of state * Privy mark, a small mark in the design of a coin * Privy Pur ...

to a

contract A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties that creates, defines, and governs mutual rights and obligations between them. A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to tr ...

. The

English common law English law is the common law legal system of England and Wales, comprising mainly criminal law and civil law, each branch having its own courts and procedures. Principal elements of English law Although the common law has, historically, be ...

system follows the doctrine of

privity Privity is the legal term for a close, mutual, or successive relationship to the same right of property or the power to enforce a promise or warranty. It is an important concept in contract law. Contract law {{main article, Privity of contract The ...

: there is no recognition of the principle (a right in the third party to enforce performance) whereby a third party may enforce a promise due unto it under a contract to which it is not a party. However, in several legal systems, including U.S. and Scots contract law, this does not bar parties to a contract from specifying that a third party is to be a beneficiary of such contract. In England itself, as well as Wales and Northern Ireland, the doctrine of privity was reformed by statute in 1999 to enable third parties to enforce contract terms made for their benefit. In Scots law, the principle was abolished by the Contract (Third Party Rights) (Scotland) Act 2017 and replaced with a

statutory A statute is a formal written enactment of a legislative authority that governs the legal entities of a city, state, or country by way of consent. Typically, statutes command or prohibit something, or declare policy. Statutes are rules made by le ...

right to enforce or invoke provisions of a contract. Rights, particularly in property, that ordinarily do accrue to a third party are termed .

References

Contract law {{latin-legal-phrase-stub fr:Tertius