SEVERANCE. The separation of a part of a thing from another: for example, the separation of machinery from a mill is a severance, and in that case the machinery, which while annexed to the mill *as real estate, becomes by the severance personalty, unless such severance be merely temporary. 8 Wend. N. Y. 587.
In Pleading. When an action is brought in the name of several plaintiffs, in winch the plaintiffs must of necessity join, and one or more of the persons so named do not ap pear, or make default after appearance, the other may have judgment of severance, or, as it is technically called, judgment ad se quendum solum.
But in personal actions, with the excep tion of those by executors, and of detinue for charters, there can be no summons and sever ance. Coke, Litt. 139.
After severance, the party severed can never be mentioned in the suit nor derive any advantage from it.
When there are several defendants, each of them relay use such plea as he may think proper for his own defence ; and they may join in the same plea, or sever, at their dis cretion, Coke, Litt. 303 a, except, perhaps,
in the case of dilatory pleas. liob. 245, 250. But when the defendants have once united in the plea they cannot afterwards sever at the rejoinder, or other later stage of the pleading. See, generally, Brooke, Abr. Summ. and Sev. ; 2 Rolle, 488 ; Archbold, Civ. Plead. 59.
Of Estates. The destruction of any one of the unities of a joint tenancy. It is so called because the estat,e is no longer a joint tenancy, but is severed.
A severance may be effected in various ways, namely: by partition, which is either voluntary or compulsory ; by alienation of one of the joint tenants, which turns the estate into a tenancy in common ; by the purchase or descent of all the shares of the joint tenants, so that the whole estate be comes vested in oue only. Comyns, Dig. Estates by Grant (K 5) ; 1 Binn. Penn. 175.