Defining the Word Loophole…Is It Really a Lawyer Thing
Loophole Fort Clinch, Fernandina Beach attribute ebyabe Flickr
Are Loopholes for Lawyers?
Do you think of a lawyer every time the word, ‘loophole‘ comes up? Now you’ll know where it came from and how the word evolved.
Narrow Windows That Widen Inward
Medieval castles were often built with narrow windows that widened inward but were no more than vertical slits on the outside. Enemy archers found these defensive positions difficult targets, but archers behind the windows had room to fire on attackers.
Called loopholes from the old word loop for ‘a narrow window’, these windows became obsolete when the invention of gunpowder made castles and city walls unimportant in warfare. The word loophole came to represent an outlet or way to escape, a purpose loopholes had never really served.
By the 17th century, writers were using loophole to signify a narrow way out and today we associate the word with a clever, tricky way out of a situation, especially in regard to evading a law.
Current Way to Evade the Law Equals Loophole
A current life example is a wrongful death suit brought against John Goodman, a multimillionaire. Goodman, 48 then proceeds to adopt his 42 year old girlfriend to protect his assets in Florida.
In 2010 Goodman killed a 23 year old by his driving through a stop sign while under the influence of alcohol…two times the legal limit.
Goodman, who reportedly had a blood-alcohol level of more than twice the legal limit in Florida several hours after the crash, also faces a criminal trial relating to the fatal 2010 crash. He is due to appear in court on March 6 on charges of DUI manslaughter, vehicular homicide and leaving the scene of a crash. He faces up to 30 years if convicted. Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/02/01/florida-businessman-adopts-adult-girlfriend-as-his-daughter/#ixzz1oTGygINS
What’s the loophole that let this take place? In Florida you can adopt an adult. Poof! You have a 21st century loophole from the Twilight Zone.
And there you have it…the odd way the word loophole became associated with evading the law.
taken from The Henry Holt Encyclopedia of Words and Phrases
What are your thoughts about loopholes? Have you used any lately…like tax loopholes?
Bad thing that the government allows this kind of loopholes. For this instance, Goodman may be jailed by the crime he had committed but his money will be safe.
Deanne,
I agree and imagine that loophole will be closed in Florida.
Hi Donna! I think it’s time for the government to take actions about this loophole. Because it allows us to circumvent the law’s intention without actually breaking that law. Often occurs in tax law. Thanks for the post!
Ooh, very interesting read. Thank you for sharing. And, I am grateful for your visit to my blog and your comment love. 🙂 Sorry it has taken me a while to get over here and leave a comment. 🙁 I hope you are having a beautiful day in God’s grace.
Kindest regards.
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Oh, yeah. Bruce Lee is (in my opinion) very dramatic in his movies. 🙂 At the time of that movie I guess Chuck Norris held the “World Champion” fighter title. 🙂 I have seen some pretty incredible video though of what Bruce Lee could do. He was quite the marial artist. 🙂 I hope you have a beautiful day in God’s grace. Kindest regards.
Brook (Matt5vse6) recently posted.."Be Water, My Friend."
Love this! Never realized that’s where the word came from, and never realized castle windows were made like that. (Haven’t been to enough castles, I suppose…) 🙂
LisaAnn,
I never realized where the word originated either. The whole description was a surprise since my only exposure to ‘loophole’ was the escaping from the law type.
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