in re /in-'rē, -'rā/ prep [Latin]: in the matter of
— used in the title or name of a case where the proceeding is in rem or quasi in rem and not in personam (as in a matter involving a probate or bankruptcy estate, a guardianship, or an application for laying out a public highway) and occasionally in the title of an ex parte proceeding (as in an application for a writ of habeas corpus)
Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam-Webster. 1996.