Letters Patent
Crown's official grant
Letters patent is an official document issued by a government or monarch granting a right, title, privilege, or authority to a person or entity.
The term comes from the Latin for "open letters," referring to documents with the seal visible, meant to be read publicly rather than kept private.
Letters patent historically granted land, noble titles, or monopolies; today they most commonly authorize patents for inventions.
The inventor received letters patent for her new device.
- royalOf monarchs
- royal sealMonarch's authentication emblem
- great sealGovernment's authentication stamp
- charterFounding organizational document
- grantBestow or award money
land grant · seal · monarch · privy council · parchment · decree · invention · exclusive · crown · sovereign · nobility · privilege · wax · document · peerage · title · monopoly · rights
- Historic DocumentsDeclaration of Independence, Magna Carta, Constitution, Bill of Rights, Mayflower Compact
- Crown Dependencies Lawfief, seigneur, seigneurial rights, Viscount