Dyer v Dyer
High Court
Citations: (1865) 34 Beavan 504; 55 ER 730.
Facts
The testator was a child with a tenancy of an estate. The estate was subject to an executory demise if he died without heirs before the age of 21. The testator died before he turned 21. Before then, however, the court had given permission for timber on the land to be cut to avoid it deteriorating. A dispute arose as to who was entitled to the timber: the current owner of the estate, or the testator’s heirs?
Issue(s)
- Who was entitled to the timber?
Decision
The court held that the testator’s heirs were entitled to the timber. The timber was cut for the testator’s benefit, and when it was severed from the land it transformed from real property (owned by the owner of the estate) to the testator’s personal property. The executory demise’s existence made no difference to this.
