Definition
A condition in law is a condition that arises by operation of law rather than by the express words or agreement of the parties. It is tacitly annexed to a grant or conveyance without any language from the grantor or grantee creating it — the law itself supplies the condition as an incident of the transaction.
The concept carries two related but distinct applications in traditional property law:
1. As a condition proper: A condition tacitly imposed by law upon an estate already vested, by the performance of which the estate is maintained, and by the failure of which it is defeated or forfeited. The estate vests immediately but remains subject to divestment if the implied legal condition is not satisfied.
2. As a term of art in Littleton's usage: Littleton used "condition in law" to describe what would more precisely be called a limitation — a qualification built into the grant that automatically terminates an estate upon a defined event, without requiring re-entry. This usage blurs the boundary between conditions and limitations and is a source of historical confusion.
The unifying thread is that neither application requires express language. The legal consequence attaches because the law reads it into the instrument or relationship.
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Common Confusion
Condition in law is frequently confused with two adjacent concepts:
Condition implied vs. condition in law: Burrill notes that the two terms are closely related and cross-references them, but they are not identical. A condition implied is drawn by inference from the words or circumstances of the parties. A condition in law is imposed independently of any party intent — the law annexes it regardless of what the parties said or failed to say.
Condition vs. limitation: The distinction matters enormously in property law. A condition requires a breach and a re-entry (or equivalent act) by the grantor to defeat the estate; a limitation causes the estate to expire automatically upon the happening of the named event. Littleton's use of "condition in law" to mean what later writers called a limitation created lasting confusion in the historical record. Researchers working with pre-nineteenth-century sources should not assume that "condition in law" and "limitation" are interchangeable outside Littleton's specific usage.
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Why It Matters in Research
Condition in law is a term of art with a narrow but precise technical function in classical English property law. Researchers will encounter it most often in older conveyancing treatises and commentary on Littleton and Coke, and it rarely appears as a standalone operative term in modern American statutes or judicial opinions. Several research traps are worth flagging:
The Littleton problem: Littleton's equation of "condition in law" with "limitation" (Litt. § 380) was adopted by Blackstone and repeated in subsequent commentators. Any time a historical source says an estate is held "on condition in law," the researcher must determine whether the source means a true defeasible condition (requiring re-entry) or a limitation (self-executing termination). The legal consequences differ, and the historical sources do not always signal clearly which they intend.
Modern displacement: Contemporary property law has largely absorbed the function of conditions in law into doctrines of implied covenants, conditions subsequent, and statutory duties. The phrase itself rarely appears in modern opinions, but the underlying concept — that law imposes obligations on estates independent of party language — persists in doctrines like the implied warranty of habitability, waste, and certain landlord-tenant duties.
Civil law codification: Black's cites Civil Code of California § 1438, which codified the concept in American statutory form. Researchers working in civil-law-influenced jurisdictions may find statutory codifications that differ from the common law formulation. The California provision is notable because it frames the condition as one the other party may choose to avail themselves of — introducing an optional quality not always present in the common law version.
Corpus connection: Because condition in law operates silently, researchers tracking defeasible estates, landlord duties, or grantor re-entry rights in historical documents should check whether a "condition in law" analysis underlies conclusions that appear, on their face, to rest on express language.
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Historical Dictionary Support
The three historical dictionaries converge on the core definition — a condition annexed by law without express words — but differ in emphasis and scope.
Burrill provides the most complete treatment. He traces the term to Littleton directly (Litt. 201a, 234b), distinguishes it from "condition implied," and flags Littleton's separate and potentially confusing use of the phrase to describe limitations (Litt. § 380; 2 Bl. Com. 155). This is the most useful historical entry for a researcher trying to understand how the term operated in practice.
Black's definition is workmanlike and accurate but draws on the California Civil Code codification, which shapes the entry toward a modern statutory framing. The definition — "a condition tacitly created or annexed to a grant, by law, without words used by the party" — is sound, but the incorporation of Civil Code Cal. § 1438 language means it reflects a hybrid common law/civil law version of the concept.
Rapalje & Lawrence offers no independent definition, directing the reader instead to the main entry for CONDITION. This is characteristic of Rapalje's approach to compound terms, but it means a researcher relying solely on that source will miss the specific technical content of the in law variant. Researchers should treat the Rapalje cross-reference as a pointer, not a definition.
None of the three dictionaries fully resolves the condition/limitation ambiguity in Littleton. They acknowledge it, but the practical guidance for researchers — that the two concepts have meaningfully different legal consequences — is left implicit rather than stated.
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Jurisdictional Note
The concept is rooted in English common law and travels reasonably uniformly into American common law jurisdictions, though the phrase "condition in law" itself is rarely used in modern American courts. Civil-law-influenced states, particularly Louisiana and California, may codify the underlying concept in ways that modify or expand the common law doctrine. Researchers in those jurisdictions should check applicable civil codes before assuming the common law formulation governs.
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