Entail Amendment Act 1848
1848 CHAPTER 36 11 and 12 Vict
An Act for the amendment of the law of entail in Scotland.
[14th August 1848]
Whereas the law of entail in Scotland has been found to be attended with serious evils, both to heirs of entail and to the community at large, and it is expedient that the same be amended in manner herein-after provided for:
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[1.] Heir born after the date of any future entail may disentail the estate; born before, may do so with consent of heir next in succession, being heir apparent under the entail.U.K.
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2 Heir in possession under an existing entail born after 1st August 1848 may disentail; born before that date, may do so with consent of heir next in succession, being heir apparent born after 1st August 1848.U.K.
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3 Heir of entail under an existing entail may disentail, with certain consents. U.K.
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4 Heir of entail may sell, charge, lease, and feu, with the like consents as enable him to disentail.U.K.
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5 Heir of entail under existing entail may excamb, with certain consents. U.K.
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6 Provision for disclosure of entailer’s debts which affect the estate disentailed.U.K.
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7 Creditors in entailer’s debts, &c. using inhibition not to be affected by instrument of disentail.U.K.
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8 Settlements by marriage contract not to be disappointed. U.K.
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9 Heirs of entail not to give consent in opposition to creditors in debts now existing.U.K.
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10 Heir apparent under future tailzie not to give consent in opposition to his creditors.U.K.
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11 Creditor of an heir empowered to disentail may affect the estate for payment of his debt.U.K.
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13 Heir having obtained decree for expense of improvements may grant bond of annual rent.U.K.
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14 Heir in future expending money in improvements may grant bond of annual rent.U.K.
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15 Executor may call on heir in possession to grant bond of annual rent.U.K.
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16 Proceedings where improvements not executed in terms of 10 G. 3. U.K.
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17 No adjudication for annual rent. Annual rent, how to be recovered. Annual rent to be kept down.U.K.
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18 Heir of entail may charge estates by granting bond and disposition in security.U.K.
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19 Bonds of annual rent or of dispositions in security for improvements to operate as discharges.U.K.
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20 Private roads to be deemed improvements under 10 G. 3. c. 51. and under this Act.U.K.
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21 Provisions to younger children may be made charges upon the entailed estate.U.K.
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22 Heir in possession to keep down the interest on provisions to children.U.K.
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23 Provisions to children not to be charged without authority of court.U.K.
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24 Power to grant feus or long leases.U.K.
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25 Where entailed estate may be charged with debt, estate may be sold for payment thereof.U.K.
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26 Money arising from sale of estate, and trust money, may be applied in payment of entailer’s debts, &c.U.K.
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27 Money vested in trust for the purchase of land to be entailed may be dealt with as if it were the entailed land.U.K.
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28 Date of Act, &c. directing entail deemed to be date when land should have been entailed.U.K.
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29 Provisions to wives and children may be granted out of money vested in trust for the purchase of lands to be entailed.U.K.
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30 Creditor not to sell land in excess of what is necessary to pay debt affecting the estate, and re-investment of surplus.U.K.
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31 Guardians may consent for minors.U.K.
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32 Form and effect of instrument of disentail, and registration thereof.U.K.
An instrument of disentail under this Act ... shall have the effect of absolutely freeing, relieving, and disencumbering the entailed estate to which such instrument applies, and the heir of entail in possession of the same, and his successors, of all the prohibitions, conditions, restrictions, limitations, and clauses irritant and resolutive, of the tailzie under which such estate is held, and of entitling such heir in possession to alter the course of succession prescribed by such tailzie, and to alienate and dispone such estate, onerously or gratuitously, and to burden the same with debt, and to do any other act or deed in relation thereto competent by law to any absolute proprietor in fee simple: Provided always, that such instrument of disentail shall in no way defeat or affect injuriously any charges, burdens, or incumbrances, or rights or interests, of whatsoever kind or description, held by third parties, and lawfully affecting the fee or rents of such estate, or such heir in possession or his successors, other than the rights and interests of the heirs substitute of entail in or through the tailzie under which such estate is held, but that all such charges, burdens, and incumbrances, and rights and interests, other than as aforesaid, shall remain at least as valid and operative in all respects as if no such instrument of disentail had been executed or recorded.
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33 Applications to the court.U.K.
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35 Procedure in court.U.K.
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36 Heirs to be called in proceedings under this Act.U.K.
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37 Excambions under the Act 6 & 7 W. 4. c. 42 may be carried through under the forms of this Act. U.K.
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38 Instruments of disentail to be final.U.K.
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39 In future entail, irritant and resolutive clauses implied in warrant to record.U.K.
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40 Irritancy not to affect conveyances or securities.U.K.
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42 Proceedings may be taken under this Act, though entail not recorded, &c.U.K.
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43 Entail defective in any one prohibition to be bad as to all. Scots Act 1685 c. 26.U.K.
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44 Instruments of disentail may be registered in the registers of sasines. U.K.
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45 No irritancy or forfeiture to be incurred for anything done under this Act.U.K.
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47 Act not to be defeated by trusts; U.K.
Where any [land] in Scotland shall, by virtue of any trust disposition or settlement or other deed of trust whatsoever ..., be in the lawful possession, either directly or through any trustees for his behoof, of a party of full age born after the date of such trust disposition or settlement or other deed of trust, such party shall not be in any way affected by any prohibitions, conditions, restrictions, or limitations which may be contained in such trust disposition or settlement or other deed of trust, or by which the same or the interest of such party therein may bear to be qualified, such prohibitions, conditions, restrictions, or limitations being of the nature of prohibitions, conditions, restrictions, or limitations of entail, or intended to regulate the succession of such party, or to limit, restrict, or abridge his possession or enjoyment of such [land] in favour of any future heir, and such party shall be deemed and taken to be the ... proprietor of such [land], and it shall be lawful to such party to make application by way of summary petition to the Court of Session, setting forth the facts, and referring to this Act, and craving the court to pronounce an act and decree declaring him ... proprietor of such [land], and unaffected by any such conditions, provisions, restrictions, or limitations; and the court shall proceed in such petition as may be just, and shall have power to pronounce an act and decree declaring such party to be ... proprietor of such [land], and unaffected as aforesaid; and such act and decree may be recorded in the register of sasines, and being so recorded shall have all the operation and effect of the most formal and valid disposition to such party, and his heirs and assignees whomsoever, of such [land] duly recorded: Provided always, that the rights of ... all parties holding [securities over such land], and all rights which are held independently of such trust disposition or settlement or other deed of trust, shall be as they are hereby reserved entire.
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48 or by life-rents. U.K.
[Where any land] in Scotland shall, by virtue of any deed ..., be held in liferent by a party of full age born after the date of such deed, such party shall not be in any way affected by any prohibitions, conditions, restrictions, or limitations which may be contained in such deed, or by which the same or the interest of such party therein may bear to be qualified, and such party shall be deemed and taken to be the ... proprietor of [such land] , and it shall be lawful to such party to obtain and record an act and decree of the Court of Session in the like form and manner and in the like terms and with the like operation and effect as is herein-before provided with reference to an act and decree of the said court in the case of deeds of trust: Provided always, that the rights of ... all parties holding securities [over such land] , and all rights which shall be held independently of the deed by which such liferent is constituted, shall be as they are hereby reserved entire.
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49 or by leases. U.K.
Where any land ... in Scotland shall, by virtue of any tack, assignation of tack, or other deed or writing ..., be held in lease, either directly or through trustees for his behoof, by a party of full age born after the date of such tack, assignation of tack, or other deed or writing, such party shall not be in any way affected by any prohibitions, conditions, restrictions, or limitations which may be contained in such tack, assignation of tack, or other deed or writing, or by which the same or the interest of such party therein may be qualified, such prohibitions, conditions, restrictions, or limitations being of the nature of prohibitions, conditions, restrictions, or limitations of entail, or intended to regulate the succession of such party, or to limit, restrict, or abridge his possession or enjoyment of such land ... in favour of any future heir: Provided always, that it shall be lawful to the proprietor of whom such lease is held to enforce any prohibitions, conditions, restrictions, or limitations contained in such tack, assignation of tack, or other deed or writing which shall have been inserted therein for the bona fide purpose of protecting the just rights and interests of such proprietor, in so far as such enforcement may be necessary in order to such protection.
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50 Consents to be in writing and to be irrevocable.S
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51 Court may make acts of sederunt.U.K.
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[52 InterpretationU.K.
In this Act, the word “land” shall include all heritages.]
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SCHEDULE to which the foregoing Act refersU.K.
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