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Livery

Delivery.

An archaic legal word from the feudal system referring to the actual legal transmission of possession of an object to another.

For example, a knight would obtain an estate in land as tenure in exchange for serving in the king’s army for 40 days a year.

The king would give exclusive possession of the land, (i.e. "livery") to the knight.

A writ of livery also developed which allowed persons to sue for possession of land under the feudal system.

Livery (now "delivery") of the land was important in completing legal possession or, as it was known in the feudal system, seisin.

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Unless otherwise noted, this article was written by Lloyd Duhaime, Barrister, Solicitor, Attorney and Lawyer (and Notary Public!). It is not intended to be legal advice and you would be foolhardy to rely on it in respect to any specific situation you or an acquaintance may be facing. In addition, the law changes rapidly and sometimes with little notice so from time to time, an article may not be up to date. Therefore, this is merely legal information designed to educate the reader. If you have a real situation, this information will serve as a good springboard to get legal advice from a lawyer.

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