Adjacent Words

Escheat definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

ESCHE'AT, n. [L. cado, cadere.]
1. Any land or tenements which casually fall or revert to the lord within his manor, through failure of heirs. It is the determination of the tenure or dissolution of the mutual bond between the lord and tenant, from the extinction of the blood of the tenant, by death or natural means, or by civil means, as forfeiture or corruption of blood.
2. In the U. States, the falling or passing of lands and tenements to the state, through failure of heirs or forfeiture, or in cases where no owner is found.
3. The place or circuit within which the king or lord is entitled to escheats.
4. A writ to recover escheats from the person in possession.
5. The lands which fall to the lord or state by escheat.
6. In Scots law, the forfeiture incurred by a man's being denounced a rebel.
ESCHE'AT, v.i. In England, to revert, as land, to the lord of a manor, by means of the extinction of the blood of the tenant.
1. In America, to fall or come, as land, to the state, through failure of heirs or owners, or by forfeiture for treason. In the feudal sense, no escheat can exist in the United States; but the word is used in statutes confiscating the estates of those who abandoned their country, during the revolution, and in statutes giving to the state the lands for which no owner can be found.
ESCHE'AT, v.t. To forfeit. [Not used.]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a reversion to the state (as the ultimate owner of property) in the absence of legal heirs
2: the property that reverts to the state

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English eschete, from Anglo-French, reversion of property, from escheir to fall, devolve, from Vulgar Latin *excad?re, from Latin ex- + Vulgar Latin *cad?re to fall, from Latin cadere — more at chance Date: 14th century 1. escheated property 2. a. the reversion of lands in English feudal law to the lord of the fee when there are no heirs capable of inheriting under the original grant b. the reversion of property to the crown in England or to the state in the United States when there are no legal heirs II. verb Date: 14th century transitive verb to cause to revert by escheat intransitive verb to revert by escheat • escheatable adjective

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. & v. hist. --n. 1 the reversion of property to the State, or (in feudal law) to a lord, on the owner's dying without legal heirs. 2 property affected by this. --v. 1 tr. hand over (property) as an escheat. 2 tr. confiscate. 3 intr. revert by escheat. Etymology: ME f. OF eschete, ult. f. L excidere (as EX-(1), cadere fall)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Escheat Es*cheat", v. i. [imp. & p. p. Esheated; p. pr. & vb. n. Escheating.] (Law) To revert, or become forfeited, to the lord, the crown, or the State, as lands by the failure of persons entitled to hold the same, or by forfeiture. Note: In this country it is the general rule that when the title to land fails by defect of heirs or devisees, it necessarily escheats to the State; but forfeiture of estate from crime is hardly known in this country, and corruption of blood is universally abolished. --Kent. --Bouvier.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Escheat Es*cheat", n. [OE. eschete, escheyte, an escheat, fr. OF. escheit, escheoit, escheeite, esheoite, fr. escheoir (F. ['e]choir) to fall to, fall to the lot of; pref. es- (L. ex) + cheoir, F. choir, to fall, fr. L. cadere. See Chance, and cf. Cheat.] 1. (Law) (a) (Feud. & Eng. Law) The falling back or reversion of lands, by some casualty or accident, to the lord of the fee, in consequence of the extinction of the blood of the tenant, which may happen by his dying without heirs, and formerly might happen by corruption of blood, that is, by reason of a felony or attainder. --Tomlins. --Blackstone. (b) (U. S. Law) The reverting of real property to the State, as original and ultimate proprietor, by reason of a failure of persons legally entitled to hold the same. Note: A distinction is carefully made, by English writers, between escheat to the lord of the fee and forfeiture to the crown. But in this country, where the State holds the place of chief lord of the fee, and is entitled to take alike escheat and by forfeiture, this distinction is not essential. --Tomlins. Kent. (c) A writ, now abolished, to recover escheats from the person in possession. --Blackstone. 2. Lands which fall to the lord or the State by escheat. 3. That which falls to one; a reversion or return To make me great by others' loss is bad escheat. --Spenser.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Escheat Es*cheat", v. t. (Law) To forfeit. --Bp. Hall.

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

v. n. (Law.) Be forfeited back, revert.