ESTATE. In the law of England, an estate in lands, tenements, or hereditaments, signifies such interest as the tenant bath therein; so that if a man grants all his estate in Dale to A. and his heirs, everything that he can possibly grant shall pass thereby.— Blackstone, Comm. 103. The first division of estates is into legal and equitable. By the former is signified the estate which a man has by the common law; by the latter, the interest which has been created by the operation of a court of equity-. See EQUITA BLE ESTATES, USES, TRUST. Legal estates are considered in England with reference to the quantity of the estate, the time of enjoyment, and the number of persons who may unite in the enjoyment. Under the first head, estates are either freehold or less than fieehold. Freehold estates, again, arc divided into freeholds of inheritance, or fees; and freeholds not of inheritance, or for life. An estate for life may be for the life of the person to whom it is granted, or for that of another person, or for more than one life. A person holding an estate for the life of another is called tenant pur antre vie. An estate per autre vie being a freehold, descends, in ease of the death of the tenant during the term, to his heir, and not to his executor. An estate by the courtesy of England (q.v.), and an estate in dower (q.v.), are estates for life. A conveyance to A. B.,without mention of heirs, makes the grantee tenant for life. An estate to a woman duringher widowhood, or to a man until the occurrence of a specified event, as till he receive a benefice, will be construed to be an estate for life. Tenants for life are entitled to take estovers (q.v.), but they must not
commit waste (q.v.). The representatives of a tenant for life are also usually entited to take the emblements (q.v.) on the expiry of the term. Estates less than freehold are called also chattels real. This species of estate, on the death of the tenant, passes, like other chattels (q.v.) to the executor, and not to the heir. They are divided into estates for years, estates at will, and estates on sufferance. See LEASES. Estates. with refer ence to the time of their enjoyment, may be either in possession or in expectancy. An estate in possession comprehends not only an estate in the actual occupation of the tenant, but one from which he has been wrongfully ousted. In this latter case, the law regards the rightful tenant as having the actual estate, to which is attached the right of entry (q.v.). An estate in expectancy may be either iii reversion or remainder (q.v.). Estates of this character form a large portion of the rights to land in England, and are the subject of some of the most subtle learning of the English law. With reference to the number of persons entitled to the enjoyment, estates may be in severalty, in joint tenancy, in coparcenary, or in common. An estate in severalty is where the sole right to the estate is in a single person. See JOLTY-TENANCY, COPARCENARY, TENANCY IN COMNION.