Defeasaunce

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The legal nullifying of a deed or property interest when a specified condition is fulfilled, as set out in a defeasance clause
2. A rendering void of a conveyance or estate once a stated condition has been met, a term used in old English property law
3. Termination of a legal instrument or ownership right through a condition written into the original agreement

Etymology: Anglo-Norman "defeasaunce" was a legal term, and the English word "defeasance" grew out of it. The word is built on the Old French verb "defaire", meaning "to undo", which gives a useful clue to its sense: a defeasance undoes something that was already in force. In practice, it describes a deed or right that is valid until a stated condition is met, at which point it is cancelled. The spelling "defeasaunce" is now obsolete, and today's "defeasance" is the form that survived in English. The older spelling keeps the Anglo-Norman ending visible, a reminder that the word reached English through the legal French used in English courts and documents rather than through everyday speech.

Synonyms: defeasance, annulment, invalidation