TIME. The measure of duration. Lapse of time often furnishes a presumption, stronger ,or weaker according to the length of time which has passed, of the truth of certain facts, such as the legal title to rights, payment of or release from debts.
Time in Great Britain, in any statute or legal instrument, means, by statute, Green wich mean time, and in Ireland, Dublin time. The only standard of time recogniz ed by the courts is the meridian of the sun ; not any arbitrary standard; Henderson v. Reynolds, 84 Ga. 159, 19 S. E. 734, 7 L. R. A. 327; 3 H. & N. 866.
Greenwich time is also in use in Holland and Belgium; France follows Paris time; Switzerland, Italy and Central Germany use mid-European time, which is one hour in advance of Greenwich time. A 24-hour sys tem is adopted in Italy and Canada.
Where a policy of insurance expires at twelve o'clock noon, the exact time of noon will be determined by the common or solar time, unless it is shown that a different time was intended by the parties ; Jones v. Ins. Co., 110 Ia. 75, 81 N. W. 188, 46 L. R. A. 860, contra, Rochester German Ins. Co. v. Gaulbert Co., 120 Ky. 752, 87 S. W. 1115, 89 S. W.' 3, 1 L. R. A. (N. S.) 364,'9 Ann. Cas. 324, where a custom of reckoning by stand ard time was shown. The termination of a term of court is determined by sun time; Texas T. & L. Co. v. Hightower, 100 Tex. 126, 96 S. W. 1071, 6 L. R. A. (N. S.) 1046, 123 Am. St. Rep. 794.
A time restriction in a statute refers to local or actual, and not conventional, time ; 7 S. C. (So. Africa) 115.
The general rule of law is that the per formance of a contract must be completed at or within the time fixed by the contract; Leake, Contr. 772. Wherever, in cases not governed by particular customs of trade, the parties bind themselves to the perform ance of duties within a certain number of days, they have to the last minute of the last day to perform their obligations ; 6 M. & G. 593. See PERFORMANCE.
In legal documents the primary meaning of month is lunar month ; [1904] 1 Ch. 305.
A requirement for publication of a no tice twice a week refers to two publications in each successive seven days and it is not necessary to count the week from Sunday to Saturday; Leach v. Burr, 188 U. S. 510,
23 Sup. Ct. 393, 47 L. Ed. 567.
• Generally, in computing time, the first day is excluded and the last included; Owen v. Slatter, 26 Ala. M7, 62 Am. Dec. 745; see State v. Elson, 77 Ohio St. 489, 83 N. E. 904, 15 L. R. A. (N. S.) 686; excluding the day on which an act is done, when the computa tion is to be made from such an act ; 15 Ves Ch. 248; 16 Cow. 659; Bigelow v. Willson, 1 Pick. (Mass.) 485; Kimm v. Osgood's Adm'r, 19 Mo. 60 ; including it, according to Presbrey v. Williams, 15 Mass. 193; except where the exclusion will prevent forfeiture; 2 Camp. 294; Windsor v. China, 4 Green]. (Me.) 298. The rule which excludes the terminus a quo is not absolute, it may be included when necessary to give effect to the obvious intention; Taylor v. Brown, 147 U. S. 640, 13 Sup. Ct. 549, 37 L. Ed. 313. Time from and after a given day excludes that day ; Bigelow v. Wilson, 1 Pick. (Mass.) 485; Weld v. Barker, 153 Pa. 465, 26 Atl. 239. But see Dutcher v. Wright, 94 U. S. 560, 24 L. Ed. 130. A policy of insurance includes the last day of the term for which it is issued; L. R. 5 Exch. 296. Particular words, e. g. at, on, or upon a certain time, will be construed according to a reasonable interpretation of the contract ; 10. A. & E. 370. The use of the word until generally implies an intention to exclude the day to which it refers. unless it appears otherwise from the context; Ryan v. Bank, 10 Neb. 524, 7 N. W. 276; Kendall v. Kingsley, 120 Mass. 94; till is held to include the day re ferred to; Bunce v. Reed, 16 Barb. (N. Y.) 352.
Whether the expiration of a policy was by standard railroad time was left to the jury, the burden being on the insurance company to prove that such time was customarily used at that place; Jones v. Ins. Co., 110 Ia. 75, 81 N. W. 188, 46 L. R. A. 860. In a notice of a foreclosure sale, "two o'clock" means standard time; Orvik v. Casselman, 15 N. D. 34, 105 N. W. 1105. If, at the opening of a term of court, the court clock is get by sun time, that governs the closing of the term; Ex parte Parker, 35 Tex. Cr. R. 12, 29 S. W. 480, 790.