lemon law
2
4.2
- noun
- /ˈlɛmən lɔ/
- Formal
:
ley de limón
- Many states have enacted lemon laws to ensure that customers can receive compensation for faulty products.
- state lemon law
- lemon law for cars
Examples
-
The lemon law protects consumers from buying defective cars that keep breaking down.
-
It might be that consumers searching the web for a lawyer understand terms like "lemon law" better than they do "products liability."
Academic text (2005) -
But this is a fun episode, I think because one you're you have a legal background and you own the largest lemon law practice, correct.
-
If only there were a lemon law for laptops.
Blog text (18) -
One involves a lemon law complaint in which an appeals panel reduced an award to $53,435 from $10 million.
Academic text (2004) -
If your vehicle has multiple issues, you may be eligible for a refund under the lemon law.
Surface Forms
Morphology
Given the provided constituent meanings—'lemon' as a defective purchased item and 'law' as a statute—the compound 'lemon law' is directly interpretable as a law dealing with defective products. The noun+noun composition is a standard, compositional pattern and therefore readily inferable by a learner who knows both constituent senses.
Etymology
Lemon law gets its name from calling a bad or faulty item a lemon, because the fruit is sour and disappointing. That's why a lemon law helps people who buy a 'lemon', a car or product that keeps breaking.