Home > West's Encyclopedia of American Law > Pais

[French, The country; the neighborhood.] A trial per pais denotes a trial by the country; that is, trial by jury.

An ESTOPPEL in pais means that a party is prevented by his or her own conduct from obtaining the enforcement of a right which would operate to the detriment of another who justifiably relied on such conduct. This type of estoppel differs from an estoppel by deed or by record which, as a result of the language set out in a document, bars the enforcement of a claim against a party who acted in reliance upon those written terms.