Legal Definitions - nient le fait

nient le fait

In legal history, nient le fait means "not the deed." It was used to deny responsibility for a signed document or contract. This term was later replaced by non est factum.

1. John signed a contract to buy a car, but later claimed that he did not understand the terms. He argued that nient le fait applied because he did not know what he was signing.

2. Mary signed a lease for an apartment, but later discovered that the landlord had misrepresented the condition of the property. She claimed nient le fait because she was misled into signing the lease.

These examples illustrate how nient le fait was used to deny responsibility for a signed document or contract. In both cases, the signers claimed that they did not fully understand what they were signing and therefore should not be held accountable for the agreement. This defense was later replaced by non est factum, which is still used in modern legal systems.