Waste brought by a man and alleging that the tenant held by his lease for the term of his life and the tenant came and showed a deed by which the plaintiff and four others had leased the tenements to him for the term of his life, reserving the reversion to all four of them, and asked for judgment of the writ.
Belknap produced a release made by three of them to the fourth rehearsing how they had reserved the reversion and how they had released to the fourth their right in the reversion.
Percy. His writ is false in its contents as it supposes that he holds by his lease alone.
FINCHDEAN, J. What kind of writ ought he to have?
Percy. A writ that is in accordance with the facts of his case.
WITCHINGHAM, J. The writ is not false for even if the others did lease the land with him he did lease it together with them and thus he leased.
Percy. He ought to have had a writ rehearsing the lease and the release made to him in this way and thus would be shown expressly in the writ how the reversion was to him alone for in as much as the three released to him he is in as of their estate, just as if the reversion had been granted to a stranger in which case they would have to have made mention ex assignacione etc. or otherwise the writ would have been bad and so here etc.
FINCHDEAN, J. In a case where the reversion is to two persons and to the heirs of one of them if the one who has the fee make a release to his companion if he wishes to have a writ of waste it is necessary to say that de eo tenet ex assignacione etc. And long ago there was a great debate in chancery on the drafting of the writ in this form. But here all the right of reversion was in his person even if he had others joined with him and even though they have made a release while their right existed the fee continues in him and so the writ seems to us to be good.
Percy. If two parceners lease for a life term and one parcener dies without issue the other parcener will not be able to maintain a writ of waste against the tenant that alleges that he holds of her lease because a moiety is descended to her from her parcener.
FINCHDEAN, J. So she will have even though their right was several because the reversion was continued in them without a severance between them. And in the case where land is leased to someone for the term of their life and after their death to someone else for a term of years a writ of waste has been adjudged against the tenant during the term.
Belknap. If two acquire jointly to themselves and the heir of one of them and lease for a life term the two will have a writ of waste.
And then the writ was adjudged good on this point.
Tauke. Again we ask for judgment of the writ because he has alleged the cutting of willows and that cannot be accounted waste unless they are uprooted. Also he has said that we have cut blackthorns and whitethorns and that cannot be accounted waste.
Belknap. As for the whitethorns we have mentioned a certain number and as to the blackthorns we have supposed that he cut none as wood and underwood generally.
Tauke. The blackthorns are growing in the common of another; judgement if action lies; as for the whitethorns we say that you granted us permission to make our profit by the deed which is here; judgment if that can be accounted waste.
Belknap. We will imparl.
Percy You have seen how he has alleged that we have cut so many cartloads of blackthorns where it should have been so many thorns as one does with other kinds of tree for waste, so that the damages could be assessed more certainly (and this was not allowed). And then he said that thorns are not trees for the purpose of waste, judgment (and it was not allowed). And then he said with respect to an ash of the value of two pence we cut it down and with it made a way at the place and we ask if we are impeachable.
Citations:
[1372] [Co Litt 53a (m)]
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Cited by:
Cited – Dayani v London Borough of Bromley TCC 25-Nov-1999
LA Tenant liable for permissive waste
The local authority was tenant of properties which it sub-licensed to homeless persons for three years was liable for having allowed the properties to deteriorate. It was claimed that they were liable for permissive waste as tenants for a fixed . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Landlord and Tenant
Updated: 24 November 2022; Ref: scu.196945