Corporation sole

What corporation sole means

Put simply, corporation sole is part of the working vocabulary of a civil case. The short definition above covers the usual meaning. Still, a specific rule, statute or contract can give it a narrower meaning. For that reason, check how it is used in your own documents.

Where corporation sole comes up

The term is used across many kinds of cases. For example, you may see it in pleadings, motions and court orders. To see it in context, browse the motions and procedures library or the Learn the Law topics.

How to research the term

To research corporation sole, begin with the rule, statute or contract where the word is used. Each one can give it a slightly different meaning. Then compare that text with how courts in your area have applied it. Also check the local rules of your court, since they can add requirements. If your case is in state court, the state rules control. So start with our state procedures guide to find them. In the end, always confirm that the source you rely on is current.

You can read the current federal court rules online for free.

Related legal terms

• Continuance: postponement of a hearing, trial or deadline.
• Corporation: an artificial person created under a state or federal statute, usually by filing articles of incorporation, that can own property, make contracts, and sue or be sued in its own name, separate from its shareholders.
• Corpus: latin for "body." In trust law, the trust corpus is the property held in a trust, also called the principal or the trust res. The word also appears in phrases such as habeas corpus.
• Counterclaim: a claim by a defending party against the party who sued it.

Why precise terms matter

Legal words often look like everyday words, but they can carry a precise meaning. Because of that, a small misreading can change how you understand a deadline, a duty or a right. Our glossary keeps each definition short and links it to the procedures where it matters.