''Dominium directum et utile'' is a legal Latin term used to refer to the two separate

estates in land Estate or The Estate may refer to: Law * Estate (law), a term in common law for a person's property, entitlements and obligations * Estates of the realm, a broad social category in the histories of certain countries. ** The Estates, representati ...

that a

fief A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of f ...

was split into under feudal land tenure. This system is more commonly known as ''duplex dominium'' or double domain. This can be contrasted with the modern allodial system, in which ownership is full and not divided into separate estates—a situation known as ''dominium plenum'' "full ownership".

Definitions

''Dominium directum et utile'' is composed of: *''Dominium directum'' (or eminent domain, superiority): the landlord's estate consisting of the right to dispose of property and to collect rents (feu-duty) and feudal incidents (fees, services, etc.) accruing from it. *''Dominium utile'' (or utile domain): the tenant's estate encompassing the rights to enjoy (use), make improvements to, or profit from property, and to keep the income or profit; includes e.g. the right to occupy and dwell on land and the right to keep the '' fructus naturales'' and emblements from agriculture. These terms are built from

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...

''dominium'' ‘ownership’, ''directum'' ‘direct’, and ''utile'' ‘useful’. Property is defined to mean a thing and those things that are naturally attached to it. For land, that would include buildings, trees, underground resources, etc. It would not include "movable" property, such as wagons or livestock. * The holder of the ''dominium directum'' is considered the superior (i.e., the

lord Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or ...

); the holder of the ''dominium utile'' is considered the inferior (i.e., the

vassal A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordina