A.D. 1869. ments, chattels real, chattels or effects, created by or derived from any settlement, grant, conveyance to uses, release, appointment, or other instrument bonâ fide executed before the passing of this Act, or by or from any devise or will which shall have become operative by the death of the devisor or testator before the passing of this 5 Act.

No marriage with de

sister here

after con

4. No marriage between a man and his deceased wife's sister ceased wife's contracted in Scotland after the passing of this Act shall be void by reason only of the affinity of the parties thereto, or by reason of any statute or of any objection or impediment founded only on 10 such affinity to the validity of such marriage or to the contracting thereof.

tracted in

Scotland to be void by reason of affinity.

Extent of
Act.

5. Clause four only of this Act shall extend to Scotland.

A

BILL

ΤΟ

5

Amend the Law with respect to the Property of Married A.D. 1869.

W

Women.

HEREAS the law of property and contract with respect to married women is unjust in principle, and presses with peculiar severity upon the poorer classes of the community, and ought therefore to be altered:

Be it enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

1. A married woman shall be capable of holding, acquiring, 10 alienating, devising, and bequeathing real and personal estate, of contracting, and of suing and being sued, as if she were a feme sole.

into

Married

woman to be capable of holding property and of contracting as a feme sole.

Property of

hold women

the Act to

2. Every woman who marries after this Act has come operation shall, notwithstanding her coverture, have and 15 all real and personal property, whether belonging to her before married after marriage or acquired by her in any way after marriage, free from the debts and obligations of her husband, and from his control or disposition, in all respects as if she had continued unmarried.

3. Every woman married before this Act has come into opera20 tion shall, notwithstanding her coverture, have and hold all the real and personal estate, her title to which shall accrue after this Act shall have come into operation, free from the debts and obligations of her husband, and from his control or disposition, in all respects as if she had continued unmarried; but nothing herein 25 contained shall exempt any such property from the operation of any settlement or covenant to which it would have been subject if this Act had not passed, or shall prejudice any vested rights or interest to which her husband may be entitled at the date at which this Act comes into operation.

be held by them as if

unmarried.

Property acquired after the Act by women married before

the Act to be

held by them as if unmar

ried.

The earnings of a married

woman to be her personal

estate. Husband not

to be liable

4. The earnings of a married woman in any trade or other occupation carried on by her separately from the trade or other occupation of her husband shall be deemed to be her personal estate.

5. A husband shall not be liable for the debts of his wife 5 on his wife's contracted before marriage, and shall not be liable in damages for any wrong committed by her.

contracts

before marriage, or on her torts.

Distribution

6. Upon the death of a wife intestate her husband shall take the same distributive share in her personal estate as a wife would of personal es- take in the personal estate of her husband if he died intestate, and, 10 subject thereto, her personal estate shall go as it would have gone dying intes- if her husband had predeceased her.

tate of a mar

ried woman

tate.

Reservation of tenancy by curtesy. Questions between

husband and

wife as to

chattels to

a summary way.

7. Nothing contained in this Act shall affect the right of any husband to hold his wife's real estate as tenant by curtesy.

8. In any question between husband and wife as to the title 15 to or possession of personal property, either party may apply by petition in a summary way to any judge of the High Court of be decided in Chancery, or (at the option of the petitioner irrespectively of the value of the property in dispute) to the judge of the county court of the district in which either party resides, and the judge of the 20 High Court of Chancery or of the county court (as the case may be) may make such order with respect to the property in dispute, and as to the costs of and consequent on the application, as he thinks fit, or may direct such petition to stand over from time to time, and any inquiry touching the matters in question to be made 25 in such manner as he shall think fit: Provided always, that any order of a judge of the High Court of Chancery to be made under the provisions of this section shall be subject to appeal in the same way as an order made by the same judge in a suit pending in the said court would be, and any order of a county court judge under 30 the provisions of this section shall be subject to appeal in the same way as an order made by the same judge on an equitable plaint would be; provided also, that the judge of the High Court of Chancery or of the county court shall, if either party so require, be bound to hear such application in his private room. 35

Husband's liability to account for wife's income and personalty.

9. When a wife having real or personal estate has allowed her husband to receive the rents and profits, or to use and dispose of the personalty, the husband shall not be held liable to account for such rents, profits, or personalty for any period during which he has so received and disposed of them.

40