Taking a Long Position Law and Legal Definition
A person buying a commodity futures contract to purchase a commodity, viz, to accept delivery of the commodity, is obligated to accept delivery of the commodity in the delivery month and pay for the commodity at the specified contract price, unless he has disposed of the contract in the meantime, although his liability for the payment of such money on any day before the delivery date is limited to the margin call on that particular day; this is known as taking a long position. If the price of the underlying commodity falls, the trader must either satisfy the margin call requirements or liquidate his position at a loss. [New Mexico Timber Co. v. Commissioner, 84 T.C. 1290, 1293 (T.C. 1985)].
