Bracton: Thorne Edition: English. Volume 2, Page 53

Harvard Law School Library

Bracton Online -- English

Volume 2, Page 53

Next

Go to Volume: Page:

[001] or monks or parsons; consequently they have nothing except in the name of their
[002] church.¹ The matter above is true unless one says that they may improve the
[003] position of their church even without the consent of the abbot, prior or other such.²
[004] [There also are priors and procurators who are removable and who can neither give
[005] nor alien nor exchange nor [answer], that is,³ bring a matter to judgment, with the
[006] consent of their superiors or without it,⁴ because they are removable and not
[007] perpetual and have neither full nor free administration. There are, however, some
[008] who are removable and may answer and bring a matter to judgment in spiritual
[009] places, as at St. Albans.] A bastard may not make an effective gift unless he has heirs
[010] born of his body or appoints his assigns, legally, by the modus of the gift.⁵ One
[011] accused of lese-majesty or other capital crime cannot make a valid gift after the
[012] felony committed,⁶ provided he has been convicted judicially and by judgment.⁷
[013] The gift will remain in suspense until he has been condemned or convicted. To this
[014] effect is the lex D. 39.5.15, where it is said that gifts made after the commission of a
[015] crime are valid unless condemnation follows.⁸ Thus it implies that unless it has so
[016] followed such gifts are good; if it has, they are invalid. One who has no seisin at all,
[017] of any kind or to any degree,⁹ though he has dominion and receives service, cannot
[018] make a gift,¹⁰ as may be seen in the following case. Suppose that one first demises
[019] land for a term to B. and then saving to the farmer his term, so that nothing be lost
[020] him by the gift, he gives the land to C, taking his homage and putting him into seisin,
[021] so that nothing remains to the donor except homage and service. Now suppose that
[022] the donor who retained nothing except dominion and service without seisin gives
[023] the same land to the same B, the farmer, and puts him into seisin de facto. If C.
[024] immediately ejects B, B. will not recover by the assise as a free tenement, nor as a
[025] term, for he loses both. Since the donor had no seisin at all, by such gift he could not
[026] cause him to have a free tenement, and since B. held to the feoffment he tacitly
[027] renounced his term.¹¹ If the said C, the first feoffee, cannot eject the same B, the
[028] farmer, at once, or after a time, the assise of novel disseisin is available to him, both
[029] against his feoffor and against the farmer, and then,

Notes

1. Infra 228-9, iii, 331, iv, 175, 335

2. ‘abbatis vel prioris vel alterius,’ from line 6; infra iv, 21, 293

3. ‘scilicet’

4. Infra iv, 69, 293, 330, 335

5. Infra 75, iv, 283

6. Infra 100

7. Infra 99

8. Infra 101, iv, 178

9. ‘qualem qualem’; D. 5.2.32. pr.; 50.14.3; B.N.B., no. 1184

10. Infra 92, 127, 138

11. Infra 138