Legal Term Dictionary

A writ, now obsolete, directed to the king's escheators when any of the king's tenants in capite dies, and when his son and heir dies within age and in tbe king's custody, commanding tbe escheators, that by the oaths of twelve good and lawful men they shall inquire what lands More...

A writ, now obsolete, directed to the king's escheators when any of the king's tenants in capite dies, and when his son and heir dies within age and in tbe king's custody, commanding tbe escheators, that by the oaths of twelve good and lawful men they shall inquire what lands or tenements by the death of the tenant have come to the king. Dyer, 360; Termes de la Ley. Less...

To deprive; to take away; to withdraw. Usually spoken of an authorityr power, property, or title; as the estate is devested. Devest is opposite to invest As to invest signifies to deliver the possession of anything to another, so to devest signifies to take it away. Jacob. It is sometimes More...

To deprive; to take away; to withdraw. Usually spoken of an authorityr power, property, or title; as the estate is devested. Devest is opposite to invest As to invest signifies to deliver the possession of anything to another, so to devest signifies to take it away. Jacob. It is sometimes written "divest" but "devest" has the support of the hast authority. BurrUL Less...

In insurance. Varying from the: risks insured against, as.described in the policy, without necessity or just cause, after the risk has begun. 1 Phil. Ins. ? 977, et 8eq.; 1 Arn. Ina 415, et seq. Hostetter v. Park,137 U. S. 30, 11 Sup. Ct. 1, 34 L. Ed. 568; Wilklns More...

In insurance. Varying from the: risks insured against, as.described in the policy, without necessity or just cause, after the risk has begun. 1 Phil. Ins. ? 977, et 8eq.; 1 Arn. Ina 415, et seq. Hostetter v. Park,137 U. S. 30, 11 Sup. Ct. 1, 34 L. Ed. 568; Wilklns v. Insurance Co., 30 Ohio St. 317, 27 Am. Rep. 455; Bell v. Insurance Co., 5 Rob. (La.) 445, 39 Am. Dec. 542; Audenreid v. Insurance Co., 60 N. Y. 484, 19 Am. Rep. 204; Crosby v. Fitch, 12 Conn. 420, 31 Am. Dec. 745; The Iroquois, 118 Fed. 1003, 55 C. O. A. 497. Any unnecessary or unexcused departure from the usual or general mode of carrying an the voyage insured. 15 Amer. Law Rev. 108. Deviation is a departure from the course of the voyage insured* or an unreasonable delay In pursuing the voyage, or the commencement of an entirely different voyage. Civil Code CaL J 2694. A deviation is a voluntary departure from or delay in the usual and regular course of a voyage insured, without necessity or reasonable cause. This discharges the insurer, from the time of the deviation. Coffin v. Newburyport Marine Ins. Co;, 9 Mass. 436. In contracts. A change made in the progress of a work from the original terms or design or method agreed upon. Less...

An invention or contrivance; any result of' design; as in the phrase "gambling device," which means a machine or contrivance of any kind for the playing of an unlawful game of chance or hazard. State v. Blackstone, 115 Mo. 424, 22 S. W. 370. Also, a plan 6r project; a More...

An invention or contrivance; any result of' design; as in the phrase "gambling device," which means a machine or contrivance of any kind for the playing of an unlawful game of chance or hazard. State v. Blackstone, 115 Mo. 424, 22 S. W. 370. Also, a plan 6r project; a scheme to trick or deceive; a stratagem or artifice; as in the laws relating to fraud and cheating. State v. Smith, 82 Minn. 342, 85 N. W. 12. Also an emblem, pictorial representation, or distinguishing mark or sign of any kind; as in the laws prohibiting the marking of ballots used In public elections with "any device." ' Baxter v. Ellis, 111 N. C. 124, 15 S. E. 938, 17 L. R. A: 382; Owens v. State, 64 Tex. 509; Steele v. Calhoun, 61 Miss. 556. In a statute against gaming devices, this term Is to be understood as meaning something formed by design, a contrivance, an invention. It M,to be distinguished from "substitute," which means something put in the place of another thing, of used instead of something else. Henderson v. State, 59 Ala. 91. In patent law. A plan or contrivance, or an application, adjustment, shaping, or combination of materials or members, for the purpose of accomplishing a particular result or serving a particular use, chiefly by mechanical means and usually simple in character or not highly complex, but involving the exercise of the inventive faculty. Less...

An instrument of' torture, formerly used to extort confessions, etc . It was made of several irons, which were fastened to the neck and legs, and wrenched together so as to break the back. Cowell.

An instrument of' torture, formerly used to extort confessions, etc . It was made of several irons, which were fastened to the neck and legs, and wrenched together so as to break the back. Cowell. Less...

Capable of being devised. 1 Pow. Dev. 165; 2 Bl. Comm. 373.

Capable of being devised. 1 Pow. Dev. 165; 2 Bl. Comm. 373. Less...

In practice. The name of an issue sent out of a court of chancery, or one which exercises chancery Jurisdiction, to a court of law, to try the validity of a paper asserted and denied to be a will, to ascertain whether or not the testator did devise, or whether More...

In practice. The name of an issue sent out of a court of chancery, or one which exercises chancery Jurisdiction, to a court of law, to try the validity of a paper asserted and denied to be a will, to ascertain whether or not the testator did devise, or whether or not that paper was his will. 7 Brown, Pari. Cas. 437; 2 Atk. 424; Asay v. Hoover, 5 Pa. 21, 45 Am. Dec; 713. Less...

A testamentary disposition of land or realty; a gift of real property by the last will and testament of the donor. Scholle v. Scholle, 113 N. Y. 261, 21 N. E. 84; Fere^ bee v. Procter, 19 N. C. 440; Pratt v. Mc-Ghee, 17 S. C. 428; In re Fetrow's More...

A testamentary disposition of land or realty; a gift of real property by the last will and testament of the donor. Scholle v. Scholle, 113 N. Y. 261, 21 N. E. 84; Fere^ bee v. Procter, 19 N. C. 440; Pratt v. Mc-Ghee, 17 S. C. 428; In re Fetrow's Estate, 58 Pa. 427; Jenkins v. Tobin, 31 Ark. 306; In re Dailey's Estate, 43 Misc. Rep. 552, 89 N. Y. Supp. 541. Synonyms. The term "devise" is properly restricted to real property, and is not applicable to testamentary dispositions of personal property, which are properly called "bequests" or "legacies." But this distinction will not be allowed in law to defeat the purpose of a testator; and all of these terms may be construed interchangeably or applied indifferently to either real or personal property, if the context shows that such was the intention of the testator. Ladd v. Harvey, 21 N. II. 528; Borgner v. Brown, 133 Ind. 391, 33 N. E. 92; Oothout v. Rogers, 59 Hun, 97, 13 N. Y. Supp. 120; McCorkle v. Sherrill, 41 N, C. 170. Classification. Devises are contingent or vested; that is, after the death of the testator. Contingent, when the vesting of any estate in the devisee is made to depend upon some future "vent, in which case, if the event never occur, or until it does occur, no estate vests under the devise. But, when the future event is referred to merely to determine the time at which the devisee shall come into the use of the estate, this does not hinder the vesting of the estate at the death of the testator. 1 Jarm. Wills, c. 26. Devises are also classed as general or specific, A general devise is one which passes lands of the testator without a particular enumeration or description of them; as, a devise of "ail my lands" or "all my other lands." In a more restricted sense, a general devise is one which grants a parcel of land without the addition of any words to show how great an estate is meant to be given, or without words- indicating either a grant in perpetuity or a grant for a limited term; in this case it is construed as granting a life estate. Hitch v. Patten. 8 Houst. (Del.) 334, 16 Atl. 558. 2 L. R. A. 724. Specific devises are devises of lands particularly specified in the terms of the devise, as opT posed to general and residuary devises of land, in which the local or other particular descriptions are not expressed. For example, "I devise my Hendon Hall estate" is a specific devise; but "I devise all my lands," or, "all other my lands," is a general devise or a residuary devise. But all devisee are (in effect) specific, even residuary devises being so. L. R. 3 Ch. 420; Id. 136. A conditional devise is one which depends upon the occurrence of some uncertain event, by which it is either to take effect or be defeated. Civ. Code Cal. ? 1345. An executory devise of lands, is such a disposition of them by will that thereby no estate vests at the death of the devisor, but only on some future contingency. It differs from a remainder in three very material points: (1) That it needs not any particular estate to support it; (2) that by it a fee-simple or other less estate, may be limited after a fee-simple; (3) that by this means a remainder may be limited of a chattel interest, after a particular estate for life created in the same. 2 Bl. Comm. 172. In a stricter sense, a limitation by will of a future contingent interest in lands, contrary to the rules of the common law. 4 Kent, Comm. 263; 1 Steph. Comm. 564. A limitation by will of a future estate or interest in land, which cannot, consistently with the rules of law, take effect as a remainder. 2 Pow. Dev. (by Jarman,) 237. See Poor v. Considine, 6 Wall. 474, 18 Lu Ed. 869; Bristol v. Atwater, 50 Conn. 406; Mangum v. Piester, 16 S. C. 325; Civ. Code Ga. 1895, ft 3339; Thompson v. Hoop, 6 Ohio St. 487; Burleigh v. Clough, 52 N. if. 273, 13 Am. Rep. 23; In re Brown's Estate, 38 Pa. 294; Glover v. Condell, 163 111. 566, 45 N. E. 173, 35 L. R. A. 360. Lapsed devise. A devise which fails, or takes no effect, in consequence of tbe death of the devisee before the testator; the subject-matter of it being considered as not disposed of by tbe will. 1 Steph. Comm. 559; 4 Kent, Comm. 541. Murphy v. McKeon, 53 N. J. Eq. 406, 32 Atl. 374. Residuary devise. A devise of all the residue of the testator's real property, that is, all that remains over and above the other devises. Less...

The person to whom lands or other real property are devised or given by will. 1 Pow. Dev. c. 7. -Residuary devisee. The person named in a will, who is to take all the real property remaining over and above the other devises.

The person to whom lands or other real property are devised or given by will. 1 Pow. Dev. c. 7. -Residuary devisee. The person named in a will, who is to take all the real property remaining over and above the other devises. Less...

A giver of lands or real estate by will; the maker of a will of lands; a testator.

A giver of lands or real estate by will; the maker of a will of lands; a testator. Less...