free and clear

free and clear (not comparable)

1. (law, of a possession) In a condition of lawful outright ownership, without restrictions or encumbrances.
   • 1854, Henry David Thoreau, chapter 1, in Walden:

     [T]hey cannot at once name a dozen in the town who own their farms free and clear.

   • 1905, Horatio Alger, chapter 21, in From Farm to Fortune:

     I have been trying to get a free and clear title to the land for a client of mine.

   • 2011 November 17, Vickie Elmer, “Inheriting a Home, and a Loan”, in New York Times, retrieved 6 June 2014:

     The will might stipulate, for example, that the heir receive the home, free and clear, Ms. Wheatley-Liss said, which may mean that the executor will be directed to sell stocks, bonds or other assets in the estate to pay off the mortgage.

2. (law, of a person) Possessing such lawful outright ownership.
   • 1949, Arthur Miller, Death of a Salesman, Requiem:

     I made the last payment on the house today. . . . We’re free and clear.

   • 2010 November 10, Kate Taylor, “Title Insurance Concept Spreads Into Art Sales”, in New York Times, retrieved 6 June 2014:

     Though standard in real estate transactions, the concept of title insurance, which guarantees that a seller is the free and clear owner, has been resisted by the art world.

• allodial title

• “free and clear”, in Cambridge English Dictionary, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire: Cambridge University Press, 1999–present.
• “free and clear”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
• “free and clear”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.