Agistment originally referred specifically to the proceeds of pasturage in the
king's forests. To agist is, in
English law
English law is the common law legal system of England and Wales, comprising mainly criminal law and civil law, each branch having its own courts and procedures.
Principal elements of English law
Although the common law has, historically, be ...
, to take
cattle to
graze, in exchange for payment (derived from the
Old English
Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...
''giste'', ''gite'', a "lying place").
History
Agistment originally referred specifically to the proceeds of pasturage in the
king's forests in England, but now means either:
# the
contract for taking in and feeding horses or cattle on
pasture land, for the consideration of a periodic payment of money;
# the profit derived from such pasturing.
Agistment involves a contract of
bailment, and the bailee must take reasonable care of the animals entrusted to him; he is responsible for damages and injury which result from ordinary casualties, if it be proved that such might have been prevented by the exercise of great care. There is no
lien on the cattle for the price of the agistment unless by express agreement. Under the
Agricultural Holdings Act
Agricultural Holdings Act is a stock short title used in the United Kingdom for legislation relating to agricultural tenancies.
List
* Agricultural Holdings (England) Act 1875 (38 & 39 Vict c 92)
* Agricultural Holdings (England) Act 1883 (46 & 4 ...
of 1883, agisted cattle cannot be distrained on for rent if there be other sufficient distress to be found, and if such other distress be not found, and the cattle be distrained, the owner may redeem them on paying the price of their agistment. The
tithe of agistment or "tithe of cattle and other produce of grass lands" was formally abolished in Great Britain by the
Act of Union in 1707, on a motion submitted with a view to defeat that measure.
Agistment tithe continued in Ireland, but was opposed by landlords who had converted holdings from tillage to pasture, who secured a 1736 resolution of the
House of Commons of Ireland
The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until 1800. The upper house was the House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, but on a highly restrictive fra ...
opposing the levying of agistment tithe on "dry and barren cattle". Although this was not enshrined in statute law until just before the
Acts of Union 1800, nevertheless it provided sufficient cover for widespread refusal to pay.
Current usage
England (New Forest)
In
England, agisters were formerly the officers of the forest empowered to collect the agistment. They have been re-established in the
New Forest to carry out the daily duties of administering the forest.
Australia and New Zealand
In
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
, agistment is commonly used during times of
drought; livestock from a drought-affected property can be agisted on a drought-free property elsewhere in the country. The livestock may travel to the alternate pasture by truck or by travelling
stock route. Agistment can also refer, in both Australia and New Zealand, to places such as farms, paddocks, or studs where the owners of horses can pay to have their animals looked after and allowed to graze ('full agistment') or where grazing only is offered ('part agistment').
United States and Canada
In the
United States and
Canada, the term agister is used in
raw milk herdshare agreements to refer to the person hired to provide agistment services for owners of the herd animals.
[; ; .] In the
Western United States, agisters are landholders who offer pasturage services, or who seek to enforce agistment lien commitments.
Notes
References
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Attribution:
*{{EB1911 , wstitle=Agistment , volume=1 , page=377
Animal law
English forest law
English legal terminology