Definition
TUI is a Latin abbreviation used in historical legal sources. It is the opening word — and conventional shorthand — for the phrase *tui ipsius causa* or, more commonly, for the beginning of a Latin maxim appearing in classical and civil law texts. In the legal dictionary tradition, however, "TUI" as a standalone entry appears as a truncated fragment of a longer Latin phrase or as part of an entry that was cut off in transcription or typesetting.
Based on the Black's Law Dictionary fragment ("Lat. A misrepresentation or conceal-") and the Bouvier's entry, it is clear that TUI as recorded in these sources is not an independent legal term of art but rather an incomplete entry — likely a typographical or editorial artifact from a dictionary page where the entry was truncated at the column break or binding margin. The associated content in both sources addresses fraudulent misrepresentation and concealment in contract formation, pointing toward the Latin maxim tradition surrounding *fraus dans locum contractui* (fraud that occasions a contract).
As a practical matter: TUI has no independent substantive legal meaning as a standalone term of art in the Anglo-American common law tradition or in civil law as it has been received into English-language legal dictionaries.
Common Confusion
TUI should not be confused with modern initialisms. In contemporary usage, TUI commonly stands for "text-based user interface," "tangible user interface," or "touch user interface" — none of which have any legal significance. Researchers using digital search tools should be alert to false positives when searching "TUI" in mixed legal and general corpora.
Why It Matters in Research
Researchers encountering "TUI" in Law Mind historical dictionary sources should treat it as an artifact of incomplete transcription rather than a defined legal concept. Both the Black's and Bouvier's fragments associated with this entry cut off mid-sentence and lead directly into content about fraudulent misrepresentation — specifically the doctrine of *fraus dans locum contractui*. If your research led you here through a keyword search for "TUI," the substantive doctrine you are likely seeking is found under FRAUD, MISREPRESENTATION, or the Latin maxim FRAUS DANS LOCUM CONTRACTUI.
Historical legal dictionaries in the Law Mind corpus frequently include Latin abbreviations and partial entries that reflect the physical constraints of print publication — column breaks, page resets, and binding losses are common sources of truncation. Encountering a Latin-initial fragment like this one is a signal to search the surrounding alphabetical range in the original source for the complete entry.
If you are researching civil law fraud doctrine in the context of contract formation, the Bouvier's fragment is the more useful starting point: it connects *fraus dans locum contractui* (fraud giving occasion to a contract) directly to the principle that a misrepresentation or concealment of a material fact, which if known would have prevented the contract from being made as it was, vitiates the contract. This is the substantive doctrine; TUI is not its name.
Historical Dictionary Support
Black's Law Dictionary records only the opening fragment: "Lat. A misrepresentation or conceal-" — the entry terminates there. This is consistent with a typesetting or digitization truncation. Bouvier's entry associated with the same source block shifts into a discussion of *fraus legis* (fraud of law) and *fraus dans locum contractui*, suggesting these entries were physically adjacent in the print source.
Neither dictionary treats TUI as a substantive term with its own doctrine, elements, or case law. The Latin context points toward *tui* as a genitive pronoun (meaning "of you" or "your") appearing within a maxim rather than as a free-standing legal concept.
Historical dictionaries in this tradition frequently include Latin pronouns, prepositions, and connective words as headwords when those words open a recognized maxim — this is the most likely explanation for TUI's appearance as an entry. The actual legal content belongs to the maxim or phrase that follows.
Encyclopedia Cross-Reference
See Law Mind Encyclopedia: FRAUD IN THE INDUCEMENT; MISREPRESENTATION; FRAUS LEGIS