Hoagland v. Crum

Citations

• 113 Ill. 365
• 1885 Ill. LEXIS 703

Syllabus

<p>1. Landlord and tenant—lease from tenant for life—rights and liability of lessee upon the death of the lessor during the term. At common law, where a tenant for life gives a lease for a term of years on a yearly rent, and dies in the course of the year before the day for the payment of the rent, the rent can not be apportioned, and the tenant may quit the premises on such death without liability to pay any rent to any one after the last day appointed for payment. This rule of the common law remains unchanged in this State.</p> <p>2. But if the tenant continues to occupy the premises after tire determination of his lease by the death of his lessor, and the owner of the reversion acquiesces in such holding, there is no rule of law to prevent the owner from recovering of the tenant the reasonable value for the use and occupation of the premises, from the time of the determination of the lease by the death of the lessor.</p> <p>3. So in an action to recover for the use and occupation of land, the defendant pleaded that the sole cause of action was the rent of the land, which had been leased by the defendant from the widow of the deceased owner for one year, from March 1, 1881, to March 1, 1882, and not from the plaintiffs, the heirs of the deceased owner, or either of them; that such land was held by the widow as and for her life estate or dower interest in the lands of her late husband; that the rents for the premises did not fall due until the expiration of the lease; that on November 1, 1881, and after such leasing, and before the rent fell due, the widow departed this life, and that plaintiffs claimed to recover the rents of and from the defendant as heirs at law of the deceased husband, and not otherwise: Held, that the plea was bad, in failing to allege that the defendant quit the premises on the termination of the lease by the death of the lessor.</p> <p>4. Same—administrator of dowress—power to release rights of heirs. The administrator of a dowress can not r