than by entry on the court-rolls. In order that a disentailing assurance may operate upon copyhold lands it must be entered on the court-rolls within six calendar months after it has been executed, by analogy to the time within which it would have to be enrolled in the Central Office of the Supreme Court in order to affect freeholds; and if it is not entered within that period it will be void (ƒ). An indorsement on the deed by the steward of a manor at his private residence to the effect that the deed was produced before him at his residence is not a sufficient enrolment within the meaning of the statute (g). The following are the principal provisions of the Act which by sect. 50 are made applicable to copyholds. Every tenant in tail may dispose of the land in fee or for a less estate, or against all persons claiming under the entail (); and where an estate tail has been converted into a base fee, the person who would otherwise have been tenant in tail may dispose of the land as against all persons claiming estates to take effect after the base fee, so as to enlarge the base fee into an absolute fee (i). Limited dispositions by tenants in tail, as by way of mortgage or the like, are a bar in equity as well as at law, notwithstanding any intention of the parties to the contrary; and it is provided, that if the estate created by such disposition shall be only an estate pur autre vie or for years, or only an interest, charge, lien, or incumbrance, "then such disposition shall in equity be a bar only so far as may be necessary to give full effect to the mortgage, or to such other limited purpose, or to such interest, charge, lien, or incumbrance, notwithstanding any intention to the contrary may be expressed or implied in the deed by which the disposition may be effected "(j). (f) Honywood v. Foster, 30 Beav. 1; Gibbons v. Snape, 1 De G. J. & S. 621; Green v. Paterson, 32 Ch. Div. 95. (g) Boyd v. Prawle, 14 W. R. 1009. (h) Sect. 15. (j) Sect. 21. Where the tenant in tail is a married woman, the concurrence of her husband and her separate acknowledgment of the deed are necessary in every such disposition, if she was married before the 1st of January, 1883, and her title to the property accrued also before that date (k). The protector (whose office and powers are described in the Act, sect. 22 to sect. 37) is in general the owner of the first estate under a settlement, for life or for years determinable upon a life, prior to the estate tail, excluding tenants in dower and bare trustees. Without his consent the tenant in tail can create or dispose of no higher estate than a base fee (1). A married woman who is protector can consent as a feme sole (m). Before the passing of the Act an estate tail could not be barred without the consent of the person (if any) who was entitled to the first estate of a freehold nature under the settlement, prior to the estate tail. Such prior estates were frequently acquired by strangers to the settlement by way of purchase or mortgage, sometimes as a mere speculation for the purpose of obtaining money for a consent to the barring of the entail. Now, by sect. 22 of the Act, the original owner of the prior estate continues to be the protector, although the estate may have been charged or incumbered by the owner or settlor or otherwise, and although the whole of the rents and profits are exhausted or required for meeting the incumbrances, and although the estate may have been absolutely disposed of by the owner, or in consequence of his bankruptcy, or by any other act or default of the owner. The protector's power of consent is not a trust as regards the ulterior estates (n); and, although his absolute discretion must remain unimpeded, the tenant in tail may purchase the consent (o). Any agreement by which the protector may undertake to withhold his consent is void, and his giving consent subse Estates for life in copy holds of inheritance. How created. quently to such an agreement will not be regarded as a breach of a contract or trust (p). The period of enrolment for all the deeds required to be enrolled by the Act is six months from the date of execution and the enrolment, when made, relates back in each case to the date of execution (q). The High Court is not prohibited by the terms of the Fines and Recoveries Act from exercising its ordinary jurisdiction to rectify, on the ground of mistake, a deed of resettlement which has been enrolled as a disentailing assurance under the Act (r). Estates for life in copyholds of inheritance are so different from the copyholds for lives to be hereafter described, that it will be convenient to treat of these different kinds of copyhold life-estates separately and without reference to each other. Of life-estates in copyholds of inheritance some are created by the act of the party, and some by force of the custom of the manor. Of the first sort some are determinable by death, some by collateral means; by death, as estates lasting during the life of the lord, the tenant, or a stranger (in a case of voluntary grant by the lord), or lasting during the life of the surrenderor, the surrenderee, or a stranger (in a case of conveyance by a copyholder); by collateral means, as estates granted to a widow or widower until marriage, to an office-holder so long as he shall perform the duty of his office, or the like. In the latter cases the tenants will have estates for life, though determinable on certain events, because estates of this kind may be limited either by the actual duration of a life or by any uncertain period, which cannot last longer than a life, and which does not depend on the will of the person next in succession. Of life-estates created by the custom of the manor the most usual examples are the customary (p) Sect. 36. (r) Hall-Dare v. Hall-Dare, 31 Ch. Div. 251. estates of the widows and widowers of copyhold tenants, who generally hold a portion of the tenement as their customary "freebench" until death or a second marriage ($). autre vie. When a man holds during the life of another person, he Estates pur is called the tenant pur autre vie and the other the cestuique-vie. If the grant should be to one for the lives of several, the estate is in effect to continue during the life of the last survivor of the cestui-que-vies: but it may be given for the joint lives of several, and in that case the tenant will have no more than an estate for the life of the cestui-quevie who shall die first. When the gift is to two persons for their own lives, it is understood to be a joint-tenancy extending to the life of the survivor, but each will hold for his own life only if the joint-tenancy should by any means be severed. When lands in ancient times were given to one man for Occupancy. the life of another, who happened to survive the tenant pur autre vie, the estate belonged to the first person who might enter as an "occupant"; and though it was always held that in copyholds there was no "general occupancy," yet in such a case the lord was allowed to hold the land upon a principle somewhat similar to that of general occupancy in freeholds, before that kind of title was abolished (t). And in a modern case (u) a custom was held good, which extended the principle of occupancy to copyholds by giving the estate to a cestui-que-vie, if the grantee for lives died intestate. But since the Wills Act, 1837, the interest of the tenant for the life of another person, who survives, will in every case pass to the executors or administrators of the original tenant, unless he has alienated it in his lifetime (x). But if the copyhold had been given to one and his heirs Special occu (s) See post, o. vi. (t) Zouch d. Forse v. Forse, 7 East, 186. (u) Doe d. Nepean v. Goddard, 1 B. & C. 522. (x) Sects. 3, 6. See Appendix, post. pancy. E. D Terms of years. Leases under custom. for the life of another, or if the tenant had aliened to another person and his heirs during the life of the cestuique-vie, the heirs were always permitted to take by special occupancy, if there had been no alienation inter vivos or by means of a devise (y); and they were said to inherit a "descendible freehold or a descendible life-estate. A similar limitation to a man and the heirs of his body for the life of another person is called a quasi-entail, and the special occupant is said to be quasi-tenant-in-tail of the descendible life-estate. But there is no estate-tail in the proper sense of the word: and the estate can be alienated by the tenant without any disentailing assurance. In the same way the executors and administrators of the tenant pur autre vie may be nominated to take as special occupants; and when the heirs, executors, and administrators are all named, it is held that the heir should be preferred to the personal representative. The Wills Act, 1837, extends to all estates pur autre vie, whether there are any special occupants or not, and whether the same are of freehold, customary freehold, tenant-right, customary or copyhold or any other tenure (s). Terms of years in copyholds of inheritance are to be distinguished from copyholds for years, which cannot be granted out for any greater estate than the term warranted by the custom, and which have several peculiar qualities to be hereafter mentioned. The lord may demise a copyhold in hand for a term instead of making a voluntary grant: and "terms of years in copyholds may be created by surrender, and these are true customary estates: but the practice is not usual" (a). By the general law, every copyholder may lease his tenement for one year, and by special custom for a longer period, without the licence of the lord (b). In some manors, (y) Doe d. Lempriere v. Martin, (z) Sect. 3. See Appendix, post. Bath (Earl of) v. Abney, 1 Burr. 206. (b) Melwich v. Luter, 4 Rep. 26 a; Jackman v. Hoddesden, Cro. Eliz. 351. |