A

LAW DICTIONARY

LABEL. A narrow slip of paper or parchment affixed to a deed or writing, hanging at or out of the same. This name is also given to an appending seal.

LABOR. Continued operation; work. The labor and skill of one man is frequently used in a partnership, and valued as equal to the capital of another.

When business has been done for another, and suit is brought to recover a just reward, there is generally contained in the declaration a count for work and labor.

Where penitentiaries exist, persons who have committed crimes are condemned to be imprisoned therein at labor.

LABOR A JURY. To tamper with a jury; to persuade jurymen not to appear. It seems to come from the meaning of labor, to prosecute with energy, to urge: as, to labor a point. Dy. 48; Hob. 294; Coke, Litt. 157 b; 14 & 20 Hen. VII. 30, 11. The first lawyer that came from England to practise in Boston was sent back for laboring a jury. Washburn, Jud. Hist.

LACHES (Fr. lacher). Negligence.

2. In general, when a party has been guilty of laches in enforcing his right by great delay and lapse of time, this circumstance will, at common law, prejudice and sometimes operate in bar of a remedy which it is discretionary and not compulsory in the court to afford. In courts of equity, also, delay will generally prejudice. 1 Chitty, Pract. 786, and the cases there cited: 8 Comyns, Dig. 684; 6 Johns. Ch. N. Y. 360.

3. But laches may be excused from ignorance of the party's rights, 2 Mer. Ch. 362; 2 Ball & B. Ch. Ir. 104; from the obscurity of the transaction, 2 Schoales & L. Ch. Ir. 487; by the pendency of a suit, 1 Schoales & L. Ch. Ir. 413; and where the party labors under a legal disability: as, insanity, coverture, infancy, and the like. And no laches can be imputed to the public. 4 Mass. 522; 3 Serg. & R. Penn. 291; 4 Hen. & M. Va. 57; 1 Penn.

476. See 1 Belt, Supp. to Ves. Ch. 436; 2 id. 170; Dane, Abr. Index; 4 Bouvier, Inst.

n. 3911.

LADY'S FRIEND. The name of a functionary in the British house of commons. When the husband sues for a divorce, or asks the passage of an act to divorce him from his wife, he is required to make a provision for her before the passage of the act: it is the duty of the lady's friend to see that such a provision is made. Macquand, Ilusb. & W. 213.

LÆSA MAJESTAS (Lat.). Læse-majesty, or injured majesty; high treason. It is a phrase taken from the civil law, and anciently meant any offence against the king's person or dignity, defined by 25 Edw. II. c.

6. See Glanville, lib. 5, c. 2; 4 Sharswood, Blackst. Comm. 75; Bracton, 118; CRIMEN LESE MAJESTATIS.

LAGA. The law.

LAGAN (Sax. liggan, cubare). Goods found at such a distance from shore that it was uncertain what coast they would be carried to, and therefore belonging to the finder. Bracton, 120. See LIGAN.

LAHLSLIT (Sax.). A breach of law. Cowel. A mulet for an offence,, viz.: twelve "ores." 1 Anc. Inst. & Laws of Eng. 169.

LAIRESITE. The name of a fine im

posed upon those who committed adultery or fornication. Tech. Dict.

LAITY. Those persons who do not make a part of the clergy. In the United States the division of the people into clergy and laity is not authorized by law, but is merely con

ventional.

LAMB. A ram, sheep, or ewe under the age of one year. 4 Carr. & P. 216.

LAMBETH DEGREE. A degree given by archbishop of Canterbury. 1 Sharswood, Blackst. Comm. 381, n. Although he can confer all degrees given by the two universities, the graduates have many privileges not shared by the recipients of his degrees.

LAND, LANDS. A term comprehending any ground, soil, or earth whatsoever: as, meadows, pastures, woods, waters, marshes, furzes, and heath. Arable land.

and this principle applies even after the expiration of an express term of years; for if a tenant continues to hold over, after his term has run out, the landlord may, if he chooses, consider him a tenant, and he is, in fact, understood to do so, unless he proceeds to eject him at once. If the landlord suffers him to remain, and receives rent from him, or by any other act acknowledges him as tenant, a new tenaney springs up, of so definite a character that it cannot be terminated by either party, except by a reasonable notice to quit. 15 Johns. N. Y. 505; 1 Den. N. Y. 113; 4 M'Cord, So. C. 59; 2 Esp. 528; 4 Campb. 275; 2 Carr. & P. 348.

The payment of money, however, is only a prima facie acknowledgment of the existence of a tenancy; for if it does not appear to have been paid as rent, but stands upon some other consideration, it will not be evidence of a subsisting tenancy. 3 Barnew. & C. 413; 10 East, 261; 11 d. & E. 307; 4 Bingh. 91. Neither does a mere participation in the profits of land, where the owner is not excluded from possession, nor the letting of land upon shares, unless the occupant expressly agrees to pay a certain part of the crop as rent, in either case amount to a tenany. 16 Mass. 443; 1 Speers, So. C. 408; 3 M'Cord, So. C. 211; 1 Gill & J. Md. 263; 3 Zabr. N. J. 390; 2 Rawle, Penn. 11; 3 Hill, N. Y. 90; 15 Wend. N. Y. 379.

And these rights and duties attach to each of the parties, not only in respect to each other, but also with reference to other persons who are strangers to the contract. The landlord retains certain rights over the property, although he has parted with its possession, while the tenant assumes obligations with respect to it which continue so long as he is invested with that character.

6. After the making of a lease, the right of possession, in legal contemplation, remains in the landlord until the contract is consummated by the entry of the lessee. When the tenant enters, this right of possession changes, and he draws to himself all the rights incident to possession after this. The landlord's rights in the premises are suspended, or con fined to the protection of his reversionary interest; that is, to the maintenance of actions for such injuries as would, in the ordinary course of things, continue to affect his interest after the determination of the lease. Of such are actions for breaking the windows of a house, cutting timber, or damming up a rivulet, whereby the timber on the estate becomes rotten. 11 Mass. 519; 1 Maule & S. 234; 9 Bingh.3; 4 Barnew. & Ald. 72; 3 Me. 6; 5 Den. N. Y. 494. The injury must be of such a character as permanently affects the inheritance; but it may be so if any one interferes with his tenants, and disturbs their enjoyment so far as to cause him loss of rent, or other damage, 14 East, 489; 4 Barnew. & Ald. 72; 1 Hall, N. Y. 214.

4. But the relation of landlord and tenant will not be inferred from the mere occupation of land, if the relative position of the parties to each other can, under the circumstances of the case, be referred to any other distinct cause: as, for instance, between a vendor and vendee of land, where the purchaser remains in possession after the agree ment to purchase falls through. For the possession in that case was evidently taken with the understanding of both parties that the occupant should be owner, and not tenant; and the other party cannot without his consent convert him into a tenant, so as to charge him with rent. 6 Johns. N. Y. 46; 16 Pet. 25: 21 Me. 525; 8 Mees. & W. Exch. 118; 10 Cush. Mass. 259. The same principle applies to a mortgagor and mortgagee, as well as to that of a mortgagor and an assignee of the mortgagee; for no privity of S. The landlord's responsibilities in respect estate exists in either case; and, as a gene- to possession, also, are suspended as soon as ral rule, a tenancy by implication can never the tenant commences his occupation. If, arise under a party who has not the legal therefore, a stranger is injured by the ruinestate of the premises in question. 2 Mann. ous state of the premises, or the tenant cre& R. 303; 6 Ad. & E. 268; Taylor, Landl. &ates a nuisance upon them, or if the fences Ten. 25.

7. The landlord may, however, go upon the premises peaceably, for the purpose of ascertaining whether any waste or injury has been committed by the tenant or other person, first giving notice of his intention. 'Ile may also use all ways appurtenant thereto, demand rent, make such repairs as are necessary to prevent waste, or remove an obstruction. But if the rent is payable in hay or other produce, to be delivered to him from the farm, he is not entitled to go upon the land and take it, until it is delivered to him by the tenant, or until after it has been severed and set apart for his use. 3 Johns, N. Y. 408; 1 Vern. Ch. 575; 7 Pick. Mass. 76; 1 Barnew. & C. 8; 7 Mees. & W. Exch, 601. But see 5 Dowl. & R. 442; 3 Barnew, & C. 533.

5. Generally, the rights and obligations of the parties will be considered as having commenced from the date of the lease, if there be one, and no other time for its commencement has been agreed upon; or, if there be no date, then from the delivery of the papers. If, however, there be no writings, it will take effect from the day the tenant entered into possession, and not with reference to any particular quarter-day. 4 Johns. N. Y. 230; 15 Wend. N. Y. 656; Coke, Litt. 46 a.

are suffered to fall into decay, whereby the cattle of a stranger stray and are injured or lost, the landlord is in neither case answerable. But it would be otherwise if he had undertaken to keep the premises in repair, and the injury was occasioned by his neglect to keep up the repairs, or if he should renew the lease with a nuisance upon it. 4 Term, 318; 2 H. Blackst. 350; 4 Taunt. 949; 1 Ad. & E. 827.

9. The principal obligation on the part of the landlord, which is, in fact, always to be

implied as a necessary condition to his receiving any rent, is that the tenant shall enjoy the quiet possession of the premises, which means, substantially, that he shall not be turned out of possession of the whole or any material part of the premises by one having a title paramount to that of landlord, or that the landlord shall not himself disturb or render his occupation uncomfortable by the erection of a nuisance on or near the premises, or otherwise oblige him to quit possession. 3 East, 491; 6 Dowl. & R. 349; 8 Cow. N. Y. 727; 7 Wend. N. Y. 281; 13 N. Y. 151; 2 Dev. 388; 4 Mass. 349; 5 Day, Conn. 282. But if he be ousted by a stranger, that is, by one having no title, or after the rent has fallen due, or if the molestation proceeds from the acts of a third person, the landlord is in neither case responsible for it. 1 Term, 671; 3 Johns. N. Y. 471; 7 Wend. N. Y. 281; 4 Dev. No. C. 46; 5 Hill, N. Y. 599; 6 Mass. 246; 13 East, 72; 12 Wend. N. Y. 529; 25 Barb. N. Y. 594.

12. On the part of the tenant, we may observe that on taking possession he is at once invested with all the rights incident to possession, is entitled to the use of all the privileges and easements appurtenant to the tenement, and to take such reasonable estovers and emblements as are attached to the estate. He may maintain an action against any person who disturbs his possession or trespasses upon the premises, though it be the landlord himself. 1 Den. N. Y. 21; Croke Car. 325; 3 Wils. 461; 2 H. Blackst. 924; 2 Barnew. & Ad. 97; 3 Crompt. & R. Exch. 557. As occupant, he is also answerable for any neglect to repair highways, fences, or party-walls; it being generally sufficient, except where a statute has otherwise provided, to charge a man for such repairs by the name of occupant. He is also liable for all injuries produced by the mismanagement of his servants, or by a nuisance kept upon the premises, or by an obstruction of the highway adjacent to them, or the like; for, as a general rule, where a man is in possession of property, he must so

jured thereby. 3 Term, 766; 3 Q. B. 449; 1 Scott, N. R. 392; 4 Taunt. 649; 5 Barnew. & C. 552; 6 Mees. & W. Exch. 499.

10. Another obligation which the law imposes upon the landlord in the absence of any express stipulation in the lease, is the pay-manage it that other persons shall not be inment of all taxes and assessments chargeable upon the property, or any ground-rent, or interest upon mortgages to which it may be subject. Every landlord is bound to protect his immediate tenant against all paramount claims; and if a tenant is compelled, in order to protect himself in the enjoyment of the land in respect of which his rent is payable, to make payment which ought, as between himself and his landlord, to have been made by the latter, he may call upon the landlord to reimburse him, or he may deduct such payment from the rent due or to become due. 6 Taunt. 524; 12 East, 469; 5 Bingh. 409; 3 Barnew. & Ald. 647; 7 Barnew. & C. 285; 3 Ad. & E. 331; 3 Mees. & W. Exch. 607; 5 Barnew. & Ald. 521.

11. But the landlord is under no obligation to make any repairs, or to rebuild in case the premises should be burned; nor does he guarantee that they are reasonably fit for the purposes for which they were taken. And it is not in the power of a tenant to make repairs at the expense of his landlord, unless there be a special agreement between them authorizing him to do so; for the tenant takes the premises for better or for worse, and cannot involve the landlord in expense for repairs without his consent. 6 Cow. N. Y. 475; 3 Du. N. Y. 464; 1 Saund. 320; 7 East, 116; 1 Ry. & M. 357; 7 Mann. & G. 576. Even if the premises have become uninhabitable by fire, and the landlord having insured them has recovered the insurance-money, the tenant cannot compel him to expend the money so recovered in rebuilding, unless he has expressly engaged to do so; nor can he, in such an event, protect himself from the payment of rent during the unexpired balance of the term. 8 Paige, Ch. N. Y. 437; 1 Sim. Ch. 146; 1 Term, 314. A different rule is said to prevail in Louisiana. See 3 Rob. La. 52.

|

13. One of the principal obligations which the law imposes upon every tenant, independent of any agreement, is to treat the premises in such a manner that no substantial injury shall be done to them, and so that they may revert to the landlord, at the end of the term, unimpaired by any wilful or negligent conduct on his part. In the language of the books, he must keep the buildings wind-andwater-tight, and is bound to make fair and tenantable repairs, such as the keeping of fences in order, or replacing doors and windows that are broken during his occupation. If it is a furnished house, he must preserve the furniture, and leave it, with the linen, etc., clean and in good order. 5 Carr. & P. 239; 7 id. 327; 4 Term, 318; 18 Ves. Ch. 331; 2 Esp. 590; 4 Mann. & G. 95; 12 Mees. & W. Exch. 827.

But he is not bound to rebuild premises which have accidentally become ruinous during his occupation; nor is he answerable for ordinary wear and tear, nor for an accidental fire, nor to put a new roof on the building, nor to make what are usually called general or substantial repairs. Neither is he bound to do painting, white-washing, or papering, except so far as they may be necessary to preserve exposed timber from decay. 6 Term, 650; 6 Carr. & P. 8; 12 Ad. & E. 476; 1 Marsh. 567; 10 Barnew. & C. 312.

14. With respect to farming leases, a tenant is under a similar obligation to repair; but it differs from the general obligation in this, that it is confined to the dwelling-house which he occupies, the burden of supporting the out-buildings and other erections on the farm being sustained either by the landlord, or the tenant, in the absence of any express provision in the lease, by the particu