Legal Definitions - entry, right of

The right of entry is a legal interest retained by a grantor (the person transferring property) when they convey land to another party (the grantee). This right allows the grantor, or their heirs, to reclaim the property if a specific condition attached to the transfer is violated by the grantee. It is not an automatic reversion; the grantor must take active steps to repossess the property once the condition is broken.

Here are some examples illustrating the right of entry:

• Imagine a wealthy philanthropist donates a large tract of land to a local university, but includes a specific clause in the deed stating that the land must always be maintained as a natural preserve for ecological research. If, twenty years later, the university decides to sell a portion of the land to a commercial developer to build a shopping center, the philanthropist (or their heirs) would have a right of entry. This means they could legally take action to reclaim the entire property because the university violated the condition of the original transfer.

• Consider a property owner who sells a parcel of land to a business, but includes a restrictive covenant in the deed that the land can never be used for the sale of alcoholic beverages, perhaps due to proximity to a school. If the business later opens a liquor store on the property, the original property owner would possess a right of entry. They could then initiate legal proceedings to repossess the land, as the condition they imposed during the sale has been breached.

• A historical society grants a long-term lease of a historic building to a community arts group, with a condition that the building must be preserved in its original architectural style and not undergo any major structural alterations. If the arts group later decides to demolish a significant portion of the building's facade to install a modern glass entrance, the historical society would have a right of entry. This allows them to terminate the lease and reclaim possession of the building due to the violation of the preservation condition.