-ˌkämpəˈtentēˌī, -tenchēˌē noun
Etymology: Medieval Latin, right to a competency
1. Roman law : the right of a defendant debtor bearing to plaintiff a special relationship (as ascendant, patron, husband, former partner, or one who has promised but not delivered a gift or dowry) to a judgment that will not deprive him of the means of existence
2.
a. civil law : the right of a gratuitous grantor to reserve if indigent a competency to himself out of the subject of his grant
b. Scots law : this right extended to fathers and grandfathers with respect to provisions granted to their children