coparcenary

Definition

1. Noun (Law):
   • Joint inheritance: "Coparcenary" refers to a legal system or situation in which two or more persons (called coparceners) inherit an estate equally from an ancestor, especially in the absence of a will or under certain systems of inheritance law. It is a form of co-ownership that arises by operation of law rather than by agreement.

Usage Examples

• (Joint inheritance by female heirs.)
• (Legal co-ownership of inherited land.)

Advanced Usage

• "Coparcenary tenure": a specific type of landholding in which the heirs hold the property collectively, with each having a right to the whole rather than a distinct part.
  • In medieval England, coparcenary tenure was common among daughters inheriting a fief. (A form of joint feudal landholding.)

Variants and Related Words

• Coparcener (n): a person who shares equally with others in the inheritance of an undivided estate.
  • Each coparcener had the right to demand a partition of the land. (A joint heir.)

Synonyms

• Joint tenancy: a form of co-ownership where each owner has an equal, undivided interest (though often created by agreement, not inheritance).
• Co-heirship: the state of being a joint heir.

Related Idioms

Phrasal Verbs