Legal Definitions - aid prayer

Aid prayer is a historical legal term referring to a formal request made by someone who holds a temporary or limited interest in a piece of property to involve another person who has a future interest in that same property in a legal dispute. The purpose of this request was to bring the person with the future interest into the lawsuit to help defend the overall ownership rights or "title" of the property. This plea was typically made by a "life tenant" (someone who owns property for the duration of their life) or another holder of an estate less than "fee simple" (full, absolute ownership), to involve a "reversioner" (someone to whom the property reverts after the current interest ends) or a "remainderman" (someone designated to receive the property after the current interest ends). It was also known as prayer in aid.

Here are some examples to illustrate this concept:

• Example 1: Boundary Dispute for a Life Estate

  Imagine Mrs. Henderson, an elderly woman, lives in a house under a life estate. This means she has the right to live in and use the property for the rest of her life, but upon her death, the house will pass to her nephew, David, who is the remainderman. A neighbor initiates a lawsuit, claiming that a significant portion of Mrs. Henderson's garden actually belongs to their property due to an old, incorrectly drawn fence line. Mrs. Henderson, as the life tenant, has a vested interest in defending the property's boundaries. However, David also has a crucial future interest; if the neighbor wins, the property he will eventually inherit will be smaller and potentially less valuable. In a historical context, Mrs. Henderson would make an aid prayer to compel David to join the lawsuit, ensuring that the full title and boundaries of the property are defended by all parties with a stake in its future.

• Example 2: Challenge to a Conditional Grant

  Consider a scenario where a local historical society was granted a parcel of land "for as long as it operates a public museum on the premises." If the society ever ceases to use the land for a museum, the property is to revert to the original grantor's heirs (the reversioners). Years later, a developer challenges the validity of the original grant, claiming the grantor never had full ownership rights to convey the land in the first place, and attempts to seize the property. The historical society, holding a conditional interest, needs to defend its right to use the land as a museum. However, the ultimate ownership and the validity of the original grant are at stake, directly impacting the reversioners' future interest. The historical society would historically make an aid prayer to bring the grantor's heirs into the lawsuit, as their future right to potentially regain the land is directly threatened by the challenge to the original grant's legality.

• Example 3: Easement Claim Against a Determinable Fee

  Suppose a university holds a piece of land "so long as it maintains an active botanical research garden." If the university stops operating the garden, the land is designated to pass to a specific environmental trust (the remainderman). A neighboring landowner files a claim asserting a historical easement across a large portion of the university's land, which would significantly restrict the university's ability to conduct its research and diminish the property's overall value. The university, as the current holder of the land with a determinable interest, must defend against this claim. However, the environmental trust also has a strong future interest in the property; if the easement is granted, the land they are set to inherit will be encumbered and less valuable. The university would historically use an aid prayer to bring the environmental trust into the lawsuit, ensuring that the long-term integrity and value of the property's title are defended by all parties whose interests are affected.