- rule against perpetuities
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rule against perpetuities often cap R&P: a common-law rule stating that in order for a future interest to be good it must vest after its creation (as at the death of a testator) within a life in being or lives in being plus 21 years plus the period of gestation of any beneficiary conceived but not yet born compare life in being, statutory rule against perpetuities, wait and see
Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam-Webster. 1996.
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n.A rule in property holding that a contingent future interest in property must vest within twenty-one years of a life in being at the time the interest is created.
The Essential Law Dictionary. — Sphinx Publishing, An imprint of Sourcebooks, Inc. Amy Hackney Blackwell. 2008.
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a rule developed by the common law designed to prevent the vesting of future interests in property at a time too remote in the future. As the rule matured, it came to be required that a contingent interest under a settlement or trust, to be valid, was required to vest, if it vested at all, within 'the perpetuity period'. The perpetuity period at common law was a period of a life or lives in being at the date the instrument creating the instrument came into effect plus 21 years. Lives in being could be, and frequently were, expressly nominated in the instrument; if none was so nominated, the period would be measured by reference to implied lives; these were the lives of persons whose existence had an effect on the vesting of the interests under the settlement or trust. Where no such implied lives were to be found, the perpetuity period at common law was 21 years from the date of the coming into effect of the instrument. Under the Perpetuities and Accumulations Act 1964, a new statutory period of up to 80 years could be employed if expressly provided for in the instrument.
Collins dictionary of law. W. J. Stewart. 2001.
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An exceedingly complex legal doctrine that limits the amount of time that property can be controlled after death by a person's instructions in a will. The maximum period for which title to real property may be held without being transferred to another is "lives in being plus 21 years." For example, a provision in a deed or will that reads "Title shall be held by David Smith and, upon his death, title may be held only by his descendants until the year 2200, when it shall vest in the Trinity Episcopal Church" is invalid. But a provision stating that "the property will be held by my son George for his life, and thereafter by his son, Thomas, and for 20 years by the Trinity Episcopal Church, before it may be conveyed" is acceptable under the rule.Category: Wills, Trusts & Estates
Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary. Gerald N. Hill, Kathleen Thompson Hill. 2009.
- rule against perpetuities
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England, WalesThe rule against perpetuities (also known as the rule against remoteness of vesting) requires that future trust interests (that is, interests that do not take effect immediately) must be certain to vest within a defined period of time known as the perpetuity period.For example, Catherine creates a trust to pay income to her husband, Colin, for life, then to hold the capital for her son, Charles, if he survives Colin. Charles' contingent interest must be certain to vest within the perpetuity period that applies to the trust. If it is not certain to do so, it is void at common law.Interests that are void at common law may be saved by provisions of the Perpetuities and Accumulations Act 2009, the Perpetuities and Accumulations Act 1964 or the Law of Property Act 1925. The Perpetuities and Accumulations Act 2009 also restricted the scope of the rule with effect from 6 April 2010.For more information, see Practice notes, Perpetuities and trusts: overview (www.practicallaw.com/5-383-8796) and Perpetuities and Accumulations Act 2009: how the law has changed (www.practicallaw.com/6-386-6091).
Practical Law Dictionary. Glossary of UK, US and international legal terms. www.practicallaw.com. 2010.
- rule against perpetuities
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n. The common law principle that prohibits granting of an estate that will not vest within 21 years of that granting, that is, within 21 years of the death of the person who created the interest. Its purpose is to limit the amount of time that title to a property could be suspended and thereby keep the property from becoming available in the market.
Webster's New World Law Dictionary. Susan Ellis Wild. 2000.
- rule against perpetuities
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Under the common law, the principle that no interest in property is valid unless it vests not later than twenty-one years, plus the period of gestation, after some life or lives in being which exist at the time of the creation of the interest.
Dictionary from West's Encyclopedia of American Law. 2005.
- rule against perpetuities
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Under the common law, the principle that no interest in property is valid unless it vests not later than twenty-one years, plus the period of gestation, after some life or lives in being which exist at the time of the creation of the interest.
Short Dictionary of (mostly American) Legal Terms and Abbreviations.
- rule against perpetuities
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n.the legal prohibition against tying up property so that it cannot be transferred or vest title in another forever, for several future generations, or for a period of centuries. The maximum period in which real property title may be held without allowing title to vest in another is "lives in being plus 21 years." Therefore, a provision in a deed or will which reads, "Title shall be held by David Smith and, upon his death, title may only be held by his descendants until the year 2200, when it shall vest in the Trinity Episcopal Church," is invalid, but a provision that "the property will be held by my son George for his life, and thereafter by his son, Thomas, and for 20 years by his future children, before it may be conveyed (transferred) [or title shall then vest in the church]" is acceptable under the rule.See also: restraint on alienation
Law dictionary. EdwART. 2013.
