n. Abbreviation of the Latin expression et alii, which means “and others”. This is often used to shorten the name of a case, as in “Pat Murgatroyd v. Sally Sherman, et al.” Only in later documents can the phrase et al. be used as an abbreviation to refer to the original document. The use of the phrase does not affect legal ownership in any way – the three Pitt brothers would still have the legal title, even if future documents only mention Darren et al. The term et al. is an abbreviation of the Latin expression “et alia”, which means “and others”. et al. is often used instead of a list of names, whether people or places, when the list would be exhaustive or simply useless. The most common use of et al. is found in essays, research papers, and legal writings. To explore this concept, consider the following definition et al.
Learn more about FindLaw`s newsletters, including our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. It is in many ways very similar to “etc.” However, etc. (which is an abbreviated form of et cetera, meaning “and the rest”) is often used to display a list of things or objects rather than people. If you need to refer to a group of individuals, etc., this is the best choice. The most common place you can see et al. is in an academic citation. However, it can also be used for legal documents that require multiple people to be noted in a single part. In many counties, especially those with large populations, these property records can be found online. However, keep in mind that you will need to investigate with the registrar`s office in the county where the property is located.
In addition, you may notice that the files have not yet been completed. This may be because the transfer in question was new or because someone did not fill out the paperwork for some reason. The Latin phrase et al. is actually an abbreviation. Translated into English, et al. means “and others”. It comes from the Latin words and (“and”) + alii (“other”). Its function is to spare authors and readers the work of long and possibly trivial lists. In this way, it is very similar to et cetera, the Latin phrase for “and other things,” which is usually abbreviated to etc. Just as etc. can be used to shorten a long list of inanimate or abstract things, and al.
can do the same for a long list of named people. et al. means “and others”. It is an abbreviation for other owners whose names are not fully written. For example, if a property is owned by three brothers, Darren Pitt, Gareth Pitt and Nathaniel Pitt, a real estate document may refer to the “property of Darren Pitt et al”. et al. should not be used in the deed of transfer of ownership to its new owners. According to the law, all settlors (persons who sell or transfer the property) and beneficiaries (persons who buy or receive the property) must be fully registered in order for their names to appear in the land registers when the deed is registered. All grantors must sign the deed to ensure that title is effectively transferred to the new owners. et al. is most often found in scholarly writings, especially when used to avoid having to list a number of different authors in a bibliography or footnote.
You can use it to describe people who have come to a dinner party, but it may seem quite strange. Some of the Latin abbreviations found in English lend themselves well to conversational use (we often hear, i.e. are used in the language), while others seem out of place. For example, few people would say “ibid.” (meaning “in the same place”) in response to the question “Where are my hat and gloves?” The abbreviation “et al.” is similar to the abbreviated phrase “etc.”, which means “and the rest”. Where etc. refers to things, et al. refers to people. Both sentences are so commonly used in the English language that they do not need to be italicized, but require a period after the last letter.
There are some rules about when the use of et al. is appropriate, although these vary slightly depending on the writing style. et al. is an abbreviation of and alia and means “and others”. Most commonly, the term refers to other authors in a bibliographic list, such as “Rodgers, Madison and Chambers, et al.” It is also commonly used in court documents to show that more than one person is the plaintiff or defendant in a case – “Michael Simmons et al.