Legal Definitions - res accessoria

RES ACCESSORIA

Res accessoria is a Latin term used in civil law to refer to an accessory thing that is related to a principal thing.

• A car's spare tire is a res accessoria because it is related to the principal thing, which is the car.
• A phone case is a res accessoria because it is related to the principal thing, which is the phone.

These examples illustrate the definition of res accessoria by showing how an accessory thing is related to a principal thing. In both cases, the accessory thing is not essential to the principal thing, but it is related to it and serves a useful purpose.