Legal Definitions - surrender

Definition: Surrender is a verb that can have two meanings:

1. To give up possession of real property, either voluntarily or upon demand, by a tenant to a landlord.
2. To give oneself up to law enforcement officials.

Another term for surrender is release. It means to relinquish or concede a right, title, or claim.

Examples:

• After the lease ended, the tenant surrendered the keys to the landlord.
• The criminal decided to surrender to the police after being on the run for weeks.

The first example illustrates the first meaning of surrender, where the tenant voluntarily gave up possession of the property to the landlord. The second example illustrates the second meaning of surrender, where the criminal gave themselves up to the police.

Surrender can also mean the act of yielding to another's power or control, or the giving up of a right or claim. For example, a country may surrender to another country in a war, or a person may surrender their claim to an inheritance.