PARAMOUNT

Above; upwards. That which is superior; usually applied to the highest lord of the fee of lands, tenements, or hereditaments, as distinguished from the mesne (or intermediate) lord. Fitzh. Nat. Brev. 135. In the law of real property, the term “paramount title” properly denotes one which is superior to the title with which it is compared, in the sense that the former is the source or origin of the latter. It is, however, frequently used to denote a title which is simply better or stronger than another, or will prevail over it But this use is scarcely correct unless the superiority consists in the seniority of the title spoken of as “paramount” See Hoopes v. Meyer, 1 Nev. 444. Paramount equity. An equitable right or claim which is prior, superior, or preferable to that with which it is compared.