Generally, a quitclaim is a formal renunciation of a legal claim against some other person, or of a right to land. A person who quitclaims renounces or relinquishes a claim to some legal right, or transfers a legal interest in land.
Originally a
common law
In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipresen ...
concept dating back to Medieval England, the expression is in modern times mostly restricted to North American law, where it often refers specifically to a transfer of ownership or some other interest in
real property
In English common law, real property, real estate, immovable property or, solely in the US and Canada, realty, is land which is the property of some person and all structures (also called improvements or fixtures) integrated with or affixe ...
.
Commonly, quitclaims are used in situations where a ''
grantor
A grant, in law, is a transfer of property, generally from a person or other entity giving the property (the grantor) to a person or entity receiving the property (the grantee).
Historically, a grant was a transfer by deed of that which could not ...
'' transfers any interest they have in property to a recipient (the ''
grantee
A grant, in law, is a transfer of property, generally from a person or other entity giving the property (the grantor) to a person or entity receiving the property (the grantee).
Historically, a grant was a transfer by deed of that which could not ...
'') but without offering any guarantee as to the extent of that interest.
There may even be no guarantee that the grantor owns the property or has any legal interest in it whatsoever. Specific situations where a precise definition of the grantor's interest (if any) may be unnecessary include property transferred as a gift, to a family member, or into a business entity.
The
legal instrument
Legal instrument is a legal term of art that is used for any formally executed written document that can be formally attributed to its author, records and formally expresses a legally enforceable act, process, or contractual duty, obligation, or ...
by which the transfer is effected may be known as a quitclaim deed or quitclaim agreement.
Details of the instrument itself, and the typical circumstances of use, vary by U.S. state.
History
![Dale Abbey cartulary 01](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/22/Dale_Abbey_cartulary_01.png)
The
common law
In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipresen ...
concept of quitclaim dates back to medieval England.
Its purpose was to provide a straightforward way for a
tenant
Tenant may refer to:
Real estate
*Tenant, the holder of a leasehold estate in real estate
*Tenant-in-chief, in feudal land law
*Tenement (law), the holder of a legal interest in real estate
*Tenant farmer
*Anchor tenant, one of the larger stores ...
or other person in actual possession of some land to acquire additional rights in it from some other person.
For example, a tenant in possession might acquire a
fee simple
In English law, a fee simple or fee simple absolute is an estate in land, a form of freehold ownership. A "fee" is a vested, inheritable, present possessory interest in land. A "fee simple" is real property held without limit of time (i.e., perm ...
in the land from a superior landowner such as a
freeholder. In such a case, the use of quitclaim circumvented the multistep process of the tenant having to formally give up possession to the original freeholder, merely in order to be re-granted possession by
feoffment
In the Middle Ages, especially under the European feudal system, feoffment or enfeoffment was the deed by which a person was given land in exchange for a pledge of service. This mechanism was later used to avoid restrictions on the passage of ti ...
as freeholder in his or her own right.
Quitclaim may originally have been an oral transaction, but by the thirteenth century a formal sealed document or court record had become necessary.
A famous early example is the Quitclaim of Canterbury of 1189, by which
Richard the Lionheart
Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Aquitaine and Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, and Count of Poitiers, Anjou, Maine, and Nantes, and was overl ...
reversed the
Treaty of Falaise
The Treaty of Falaise was a forced written agreement made in December 1174 between the captive William I, King of Scots, and Henry II, King of England.
During the Revolt of 1173-1174, William joined the rebels and was captured at the Battle of ...
, transferring his claims on Scotland to
William the Lion
William the Lion, sometimes styled William I and also known by the nickname Garbh, "the Rough"''Uilleam Garbh''; e.g. Annals of Ulster, s.a. 1214.6; Annals of Loch Cé, s.a. 1213.10. ( 1142 – 4 December 1214), reigned as King of Scots from 11 ...
.
In United States law
In most arms-length
real property
In English common law, real property, real estate, immovable property or, solely in the US and Canada, realty, is land which is the property of some person and all structures (also called improvements or fixtures) integrated with or affixe ...
transactions, such as a house sale, it is normal for the seller or
grantor
A grant, in law, is a transfer of property, generally from a person or other entity giving the property (the grantor) to a person or entity receiving the property (the grantee).
Historically, a grant was a transfer by deed of that which could not ...
to
warrant that they actually own the property or the interest in it that they are purporting to transfer. But a quitclaim deed contains no such warranty, and the
grantee
A grant, in law, is a transfer of property, generally from a person or other entity giving the property (the grantor) to a person or entity receiving the property (the grantee).
Historically, a grant was a transfer by deed of that which could not ...
is entitled only to whatever interest the grantor actually possesses at the time.
Indeed, the quitclaim deed may offer the grantee no warranty at all even as to the status of the property's title (ownership), and there may be no guarantee that the grantor owns any interest in the property at all.
Because of the lack of warranty, quitclaim deeds are most often used in specific situations where a precise definition of the grantor's interest is unnecessary, such as where property is being transferred as a gift, to a family member, or into a business entity.
[ For example, when a spouse is to acquire the marital home as part of a divorce settlement, the other spouse may be able to transfer their full interest quickly and inexpensively via a quitclaim deed.] A quitclaim deed may also be used to transfer title of a property to a purchaser following a foreclosure
Foreclosure is a legal process in which a lender attempts to recover the balance of a loan from a borrower who has stopped making payments to the lender by forcing the sale of the asset used as the collateral for the loan.
Formally, a mortg ...
auction. Typically such a deed will not warrant that the property title is free and clear In property law, the term free and clear refers to ownership without legal encumbrances, such as a lien or mortgage. So, for example: a person owns a house free and clear if he has paid off the mortgage and no creditor has filed a lien against i ...
, and it remains up to the grantee to check that the property is not subject to any legal encumbrance
An encumbrance is a third party's right to, interest in, or legal liability on property that does not prohibit the property's owner from transferring title (but may diminish its value). Encumbrances can be classified in several ways. They may be f ...
s.
Usage varies by state, and in quitclaim deeds include statutory warranties (similar to “special warranty deeds” in other states) and are the norm rather than the exception.
Execution of a quitclaim deed is relatively simple, and may require little more than the signature of the parties. Some states require the deed to be notarized or acknowledged before a notary. Some states permit a jurat
The ''jurats'' () are lay people in Guernsey and Jersey who act as judges of fact rather than law, though they preside over land conveyances and liquor licensing. In Alderney, however, the jurats are judges of both fact and law (assisted by thei ...
, also known as a ''verification upon oath'' or ''affirmation'', in which the affiant
An ( ; Medieval Latin for "he has declared under oath") is a written statement voluntarily made by an ''affiant'' or '' deponent'' under an oath or affirmation which is administered by a person who is authorized to do so by law. Such a statemen ...
swears to the truth of the contents of the document, and signs the document in front of the notary.
See also
*Bargain and sale deed
A bargain and sale deed is in United States real property law, a deed "conveying real property without covenants".
This is a deed "for which the grantor implies to have or have had an interest in the property but offers no warranties of title to ...
*Estoppel by deed
Estoppel is a common law doctrine which, when it applies, prevents a litigant from denying the truth of what was said or done. The doctrine of estoppel by deed (also known as after-acquired title) is a particular estoppel doctrine in the context o ...
*Warranty deed
A warranty deed is a type of deed where the grantor (seller) guarantees that they hold clear title to a piece of real estate and has a right to sell it to the grantee (buyer), in contrast to a quitclaim deed, where the seller does not guarantee ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Quitclaim Deed
Real property law
Real estate terminology
Common law legal terminology
Property law legal terminology