Definition
LOT carries three distinct legal meanings across different contexts:
1. Chance or arbitrament. The mechanism by which an outcome is determined fortuitously — that is, without human design, preference, or deliberate choice. In this sense, a lot is both the object used to randomize a result (a die, slip, or token) and the process itself. Courts historically and modernly treat decisions "by lot" with suspicion when they substitute chance for reasoned judgment.
2. A parcel of land. A defined, bounded portion of real property, typically one unit within a larger division of land. The term is especially associated with subdivided urban, town, or village land — as opposed to rural acreage, which is more commonly described by "tract" or "parcel." In subdivision law, a lot is a discrete unit on a recorded plat map, assigned a number and bounded by survey lines. The term carries no implication as to size.
3. A unit at auction or in commerce. One item, or a group of items offered and sold together as a single unit in an auction or commercial transaction. A lot in this sense is defined by how goods are presented for sale, not by any inherent quality of the goods themselves.
Common Language
Modern common usage (Wiktionary): A large quantity or number ("a lot of trouble"); a distinct portion of land; items auctioned as a unit; that which happens by chance.
Historical common usage (Webster's 1913): That which happens without human design or forethought; chance; accident; also, the object (die, ball, slip of paper) used to determine a question by chance.
The gap between ordinary and legal usage is meaningful in two directions. Colloquially, "a lot" most often means simply a large quantity — a usage the law ignores entirely. Conversely, ordinary speakers rarely use "lot" to mean a unit at auction, while auction and commercial law treats this as a term of art. The land meaning overlaps substantially between common and legal use, but law adds precision: a legal "lot" is a formally surveyed and recorded unit, not merely any patch of ground.
Common Confusion
LOT vs. TRACT vs. PARCEL. These terms are frequently used interchangeably in informal or historical sources, but they carry distinct legal weight in many jurisdictions. Anderson's Dictionary specifically notes that in homestead law, "lot" was held not synonymous with "tract" or "parcel" — lot implies a city, town, or village lot as designated on an official survey, while tract and parcel are broader and may encompass rural acreage or informally described land. Researchers reading land grants, homestead entries, or subdivision instruments should not assume these terms are interchangeable.
LOT (chance) vs. LOTTERY. Drawing lots and conducting a lottery share the randomization element but are legally distinct. A lottery involves a prize, consideration, and chance — three elements that trigger regulatory law. Drawing lots to break a tie or allocate among equals does not necessarily constitute a lottery. Anderson's cross-references the two but treats them separately.
Recognized Forms
/SUBTYPES
Building lot. A lot specifically designated or zoned for construction, typically in a recorded subdivision plat.
Auction lot. One or more items grouped and offered for sale as a single bidding unit. Defined functionally by how items are presented, not by category or type.
Corner lot. A lot situated at the intersection of two streets — relevant in zoning, easement, and setback law because it has two street frontages.
Scot and lot. An archaic English form: a local tax or contribution assessed proportionally among inhabitants. Burrill traces this usage to Old English (hlot), meaning one's share of a common obligation. This sense is obsolete in American practice but appears in historical English sources.
Why It Matters in Research
The land-parcel meaning is the most frequently encountered in American legal research and requires care in historical sources. Pre-twentieth-century instruments often use "lot" loosely to describe any discrete piece of land, while later subdivision and zoning law narrowed the term to a formally platted unit. A researcher reading an 1860 deed that conveys "Lot 7" may be looking at a formally surveyed town lot — or merely an informal designation with no recorded plat behind it. Context and the recording system of the jurisdiction will determine which.
The arbitrament-of-chance meaning surfaces in distinct research contexts: jury selection history, inheritance allocation, and challenges to verdicts. Anderson's notes directly that a verdict arrived at by drawing lots will be set aside — a rule with deep roots and continuing vitality. Researchers examining early American jury practice or equity division of estates will encounter the lot-as-chance sense regularly.
The Derbyshire mining reference in Black's (the "thirteenth dish of lead" belonging to the Crown) is a jurisdictional fossil — a survival of English royal mining rights with no American application. Researchers can safely note it as historical color in a treatise context but should not import it into any American legal analysis.
The Burrill/Scot and lot sense is important for researchers in English legal history, municipal taxation, and suffrage history (the phrase "scot and lot" defined a class of borough voters in pre-Reform Act England). It will appear in English Year Books and borough records and is entirely absent from American doctrine.
In UCC and commercial contexts, the auction-lot meaning is a term of art. Article 2 of the UCC treats a "lot" as a parcel or single article that is the subject matter of a separate sale or delivery. Researchers working on commercial disputes involving auction sales or bulk transactions should check whether the UCC definition applies, as it may differ from how the term is used in the underlying contract.
Historical Dictionary Support
The historical dictionaries agree on the core meanings — chance and land parcel — but differ in emphasis and depth.
Black's (both editions) leads with the chance meaning and adds the Derbyshire mining curiosity. The land-parcel sense is noted briefly. Bouvier grounds the chance meaning in natural law reasoning (Wolff), arguing that lot is only proper when rights cannot otherwise be determined with certainty — a philosophical gloss the other dictionaries omit and that carries genuine doctrinal weight in equity contexts.
Anderson's is most practically useful: it flags the verdict-by-lot rule and the homestead law distinction between "lot," "tract," and "parcel" — both points of direct research relevance. Burrill is unique in recovering the Old English (hlot) sense and the scot-and-lot connection, which the other dictionaries do not address. Researchers in English legal history will find Burrill indispensable here; American researchers can treat it as background.
None of the historical dictionaries address the commercial/auction-lot meaning with any depth — an expected gap, since the UCC definition is a twentieth-century development. Researchers should not rely on historical dictionary entries for the commercial meaning.
Jurisdictional Note
The land-parcel meaning is governed primarily by state subdivision and zoning law, and the definition of a "lot" for regulatory purposes (minimum lot size, lot coverage, lot frontage) varies significantly by state and even by municipality. What constitutes a legal lot in a recorded subdivision in one jurisdiction may not satisfy the minimum requirements of another. Researchers should consult the applicable zoning ordinance and state subdivision enabling statute rather than relying on a generic common-law definition.
Encyclopedia Cross-Reference
See Law Mind Encyclopedia: Subdivision and Platting; Auctions and Auction Law; Lotteries and Games of Chance; Scot and Lot (English Borough Franchise).