merger

In general, a merger is the act of uniting separate things. Specifically -

1. In corporate law, a merger is the absorption of one corporation into another. The surviving corporation acquires all the assets and liabilities of the corporation getting absorbed. The joining of non-corporate entities such as associations may sometimes be called a merger as well.

2. In civil procedure, the doctrine of merger is the principle that a final judgment for the plaintiff brings together all parties’ claims involved in the lawsuit. As a result, the plaintiff can only enforce the judgment awarded and cannot bring any of the claims again regardless of whether the award seems too small or the plaintiff has a new legal theory. Likewise, the defendant cannot bring any new counterclaims or defenses. This effect of a final judgment is called merger.

3. In criminal law, merger of offenses is the absorption of a lesser included offense into a more serious offense if a defendant is charged with both. Under the merger doctrine, if the lesser offense was required to commit the more serious offense, then the prosecution can merge the offenses and prosecute them together. The purpose of merger in criminal cases is efficiency and the avoidance of double jeopardy. See merger doctrine.

4. In property law, the rule of merger is the absorption of a lesser estate (e.g., lease of land) into a greater estate (e.g., fee simple ownership of the same land) when both estates are successive and become vested property of the same person.

5. In property law, a trust merger is when the sole trustee and the sole beneficiary of a trust are the same person or institution, ending the trust.

6. In property law, when an individual owns both an easement and the servient estate, the merger of estates (merger of easement or merger of tenements) destroys the easement. All owners of both the easement and the servient estate must be the same. Thus, in a common easement or a joint tenancy, all owners of both properties must be the same to extinguish the easement. 

7. In contract law, a merger clause, or integration clause, absorbs an inferior form of contract into a superior form of contract on the same subject matter, making the final written contract complete and binding. Thus, an oral agreement discussing some business deal merges into the final written agreement on the same deal; any terms of the oral agreement usually cannot be enforced if contrary to the terms of the written agreement. See Integration.

8. In contract law, the merger of contract and deed means any term or obligation in a land purchase contract is reflected in the deed which is then accepted by the buyer. Merger of contract and deed prevents discrepancies over the terms of a contract because the deed confirms the contract.

[Last updated in July of 2023 by the Wex Definitions Team]