ABSTRACT

OF THE

ACT 1ST VICTORIA, CH. 26,

INTITULED

"An act for the Amendment of the Laws with respect to Wills."-3rd July, 1837.

SEC. I. The words and expressions after mentioned, which in their ordinary signification have a more confined or different meaning, shall in this act, except where the nature of the provision or context shall exclude such construction, be interpreted as follows:-the word 'will" shall extend to a testament, a codicil, an appointment by will or writing in nature of a will in exercise of a power, and also to a disposition by will and testament or devise of custody and tuition of any child by virtue of 12 C. 2, c. 24, or the Irish act, 14 and 15 C. 2. (I.) and to any other testamentary disposition; the words "real estate" shall extend to manors, advowsons, messuages, lands, tithes, rents, and hereditaments, whether freehold, customary freehold, tenant right, customary or copyhold, or of any other tenure, and whether corporeal, incorporeal, or personal; and to any undivided share thereof, and to any estate, right, or interest (other than a chattel interest) therein. The words "personal estale" shall extend to leasehold estates and other chattels real; also to monies, shares of government and other funds, securities for money (not

being real estates), debts, choses in action, rights, credits, goods, and all other property whatsoever, which by law devolves upon the executor or administrator, and to any share or interest therein; every word importing singular number only, shall extend and be applied to several persons or things as well as one, and words importing masculine gender only, shall extend and be applied to a female as well as male.

II. Repeals (except as the same relate to wills or estates pur autre vie, to which the present act does not extend) 32 H. 8, c. 1; 34 and 35 H. 8, c. 5.; 10 Car. 1, sess. 2. c. 2 (I.); sections 5, 6, 12, 19, 20, 21, and 22 of Statute of Frauds (29 Cra. 2, c. 3.) ; the like provisions in Irish Statute of Frauds, 7 W. 3. c. 12 (I.); section 14 of 4 & 5 Anne, c. 16, and the corresponding Irish Act, 6 Anne, c. 10 (I.); section 9 of 14 G. 2, c. 20; 25 Geo. 2, c. 6. (except as to colonies); 25 G. 2, c. 11. (I,) and 55 G. 3, c. 192.

III. It shall be lawful for every person to devise, bequeath, or dispose of by his will, executed as after required, all real estate and all personal estate which he shall be entitled to, either at law or in equity, at the time of his death, and which, if not so devised, bequeathed or disposed of, would devolve upon the heir at law or customary heir of him, or if he became entitled by descent of his ancestor, or upon his executor or administrator; and the power hereby given shall extend to all real estate of the nature of customary freehold or tenant right, or customary or copyhold, though not surrendered to the use of his will: or though being entitled as heir, devisee, or otherwise to be admitted, he shall not have been admitted; or though the same for want of a custom to surrender to will or otherwise, could not at law have been disposed of by will if this act not made; or though the same, in consequence of a custom that a will or surrender to will should continue in force a limited time only, or any other special custom, could not have been disposed of by will according to the powers

contained in this act, if act not made; also to estates pur autre vie, whether or not any special occupant, and whether freehold, customary freehold, tenant right, customary or copyhold, or of any other tenure, and whether a corporeal or incorporeal hereditament. Also to all contingent, executory, or other future interests in any real or personal estate, whether the testator may or may not be ascertained as the person or one of the persons in whom the same respectively may become vested, and whether entitled thereto under the instrument by which the same respectively were created, or under any disposition thereof by deed or will: Also to all rights of entry for conditions broken and other rights of entry. ALSO to such of the same estates, interests, and rights, and other real and personal estate as the testator may be entitled to at the time of his death, notwithstanding that he may become entitled to the same subsequently to the execution of his will.

IV. Where real estate of the nature of customary freehold, tenant right, customary or copyhold, might, by custom of the manor, have been surrendered to use of a will, and the testator shall not have so surrendered the same, no person entitled or claiming by virtue of such will shall be entitled to be admitted, except on payment of all such stamp duties, fees, and sums of money as would have been lawfully due and payable in respect of the surrendering of such real estate to use of will, or in respect of presenting, registering, or enrolling such surrender, if the estate had been surrendered to use of will, and where the testator was entitled to have been admitted, and might, if admitted, have surrendered to use of his will, and shall not have been admitted, no person entitled or claiming such real estate in consequence of such will shall be entitled to be admitted by virtue thereof, except on payment of all such stamp duties, fees, fine, and sums of money as would have been lawfully due and payable in respect of the admittance of such testator, and of surrendering to use of the

will, or of presenting, registering, or enrolling such surrender, had the testator been duly admitted and afterwards surrendered to use of his will; all which stamp duties, fees, fine, or sums of money due as aforesaid shall be paid in addition to the stamp duties, &c., due or payable on admittance of such person so entitled or claiming as aforesaid.

V. When any real estate of the nature of customary freehold or tenant right, or customary or copyhold, shall be disposed of by will, the lord of the manor or reputed manor of which such real estate is holden, or his steward, or the deputy of such steward, shall cause the will by which such disposition shall be made, or so much thereof as shall contain the disposition of such real estate, to be entered on the court rolls: and when any trusts are declared, it shall not be necessary to enter the declaration of such trusts, but sufficient to state in the entry that such real estate is subject to the trusts declared by such will; and when any such real estate could not have been disposed of by will if this act had not been made, the same fine, heriot, dues, duties, and services shall be paid and rendered by the devisee as would have been due from the customary heir in case of descent; and the lord shall, as against the devisee, have the same remedy for recovering and enforcing such fine, &c., as now entitled to for recovering and enforcing the same from or against the customary heir in case of a descent.

VI. If no disposition by will shall be made of any estate pur autre vie of a freehold nature, the same shall be chargeable in the hands of the heir, if it shall come to him by reason of special occupancy, as assets by descent, as in the case of freehold land in fee simple; and if no special occupant of any estate pur autre vie, whether freehold or customary freehold, tenant right, customary or copyhold, or of any other tenure, and whether a corporeal or incorporeal hereditament, it shall go to the executor or administrator of the party that had the estate thereof by virtue of

the grant; and if the same shall come to the executor or administrator either by reason of a special occupancy or by virtue of this act, it shall be assets in his hands, and shall go and be applied and distributed as the personal estate of the testator or intestate.

VII. No will made by any person under the age of twenty-one years shall be valid.

VIII. No will made by any married woman shall be valid, except such a will as might have been made by a married woman before the passing of this act.

IX. No will shall be valid unless in writing, and executed in manner after mentioned; (i. e.) it shall be signed at the foot or end thereof by the testator, or by some other person in his presence and by his direction; and such signature shall be made or acknowledged by the testator in the presence of two or more witnesses present at the same time; and such witnesses shall attest and shall subscribe the will in the presence of the testator, but no form of attestation shall be necessary.

X. No appointment made by will, in exercise of any power, shall be valid, unless the same be so executed; and every will so executed shall so far as respects the execution and attestation thereof, be a valid execution of a power of appointment by will, notwithstanding it shall have been expressly required that a will made in exercise of such power should be executed with some additional or other form of execution or solemnity.

XI. Any soldier being in actual military service, or any mariner or seaman being at sea, may dispose of his personal estate as he might have done before the making of this act.

XII. This act shall not prejudice or affect the provisions contained in 11 Geo. 4. and 1 W. 4, c. 20., respecting the wills of petty officers and seamen in the royal navy, and non-commissioned officers of marines, and marines, so far as relates to their wages, pay, prize money, bounty money, and allow