Shelley’s case; Wolfe v Shelley: 1581

If it is possible to do so, every word in a deed must be given effect. A judgment and the process known as recovery were effective even though the defendant had died in the early morning of the day on which, after his death, the court orders were made. The reason given was that ‘the record is to be understood of the whole day, and relates without division to the first instant of the day.’

Judges:

Sir Thomas Bromley, Lord Chancellor

Citations:

(1581) 1 Co Rep 93b

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Cited by:

CitedVan Grutten v Foxwell 1897
It would be dangerous to allow a jury, eight years after the event, to decide that a woman executing a deed had been incompetent to do so when at the time she had been certified competent. It is one thing to put the rule in a nutshell and another to . .
CitedSerco Ltd v Lawson; Botham v Ministry of Defence; Crofts and others v Veta Limited HL 26-Jan-2006
Mr Lawson was employed by Serco as a security supervisor at the British RAF base on Ascension Island, which is a dependency of the British Overseas Territory of St Helena. Mr Botham was employed as a youth worker at various Ministry of Defence . .
CitedRe Palmer (A Deceased Debtor), Palmer v Palmer CA 6-Apr-1994
Property had been conveyed to the deceased and the appellant, his widow, to be held as joint tenants. The deceased dies whilst under investigation for defalcations as a solicitor, and an insolvency administration order was obtained in the estate. . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Litigation Practice

Updated: 07 December 2022; Ref: scu.238149