Restitution – this legal term applies in the Court procedures, where usually refers to a claim for restoring a legal position before certain wrongful act. For example a payee of money may claim at court refund of money paid by mistake. The origin of this term is the Latin word “restitutio”, which means something is to be restored to its initial position.

Within the meaning, given by the Property Law restitution means that a real estate that has been taken away by its initial owner on the base of governmental or state orders should be given back to its initial owner. There is another meaning in the Real Estate Law, where the term restitution details the procedure of buying (something) back. It occurs in a situation where a vendor later buys the property back from the buyer. I.e. he returns the paid to him purchase price back to the buyer and receives again the title of property. In this way the seller exercises a right of redemption. In some jurisdictions where a mortgage transfers title to the lender until the mortgage is paid off, the “buying back” of the property is known as redemption.

In practice, the word participates in the legal term “restitution hearing”, which in the Tort Law refers to a hearing, performed if any of the parties – the offender or the victim, appeals the amount of restitution (in the meaning of compensation) awarded by the judge or the amount of the expenses claimed by the plaintiff. In other situations it could be performed to establish if compensation is owed, and if so, in what amount.

Synonyms are “restoration”, and when talking about compensations – “reimbursement” and “reparation”.