accession

Accession has several specialized meanings in legal contexts.

In international law , accession is the act of a state accepting an offer to become a party to an existing treaty that was previously negotiated and signed between other states, usually after the treaty has already entered into force. At the international level (i.e., not domestically), accession to a treaty has the same effect as treaty ratification . See Glossary of terms relating to treaty actions at treaties.un.org .
In real property law, accession is the grant of legal title to a real property owner of things that have been added to their real property—usually by a lessee . Some examples include natural growths (including crops), accretion , and fixtures or other improvements to the property.
- Compare with adverse possession .
In the law of secured transactions , accessions are goods that were physically united with other goods such that they do not change the identity of the original goods. Because item identity is not changed, accessions may have security interests distinct from the goods they were united with.
- Contrast with commingled goods : goods so physically united with other goods such that the identity of the original goods is lost.
- In every state in the United States, the Uniform Commercial Code contains the set of state-level laws that govern accessions of goods in secured transactions. See U.C.C. § 9-335. ACCESSIONS .

[Last reviewed in October of 2024 by the Wex Definitions Team ]

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