Legal Definitions - writ of dower

A writ of dower was a specific legal action that a widow could initiate to claim the full portion of her dower rights when she had only received a partial assignment of it. In historical common law, "dower" referred to a widow's lifetime right to a share (typically one-third) of the real estate owned by her deceased husband. If the husband's heirs or the current occupants of the land only provided her with a fraction of what she was legally entitled to, the writ of dower allowed her to petition the court to compel them to assign the remainder of her rightful share.

Example 1: Disputed Inheritance of Farmland

• Scenario: After Mr. Henderson passed away, his son inherited the family farm. Mrs. Henderson, his widow, was legally entitled to a one-third lifetime interest in the farm as her dower. The son, however, only assigned her a small cottage and a few acres, claiming that was all she needed, despite the farm being much larger.
• Illustration: Mrs. Henderson could have pursued a writ of dower to compel her son to assign her the remaining portion of her one-third interest in the entire farmland. The writ would have been the legal mechanism to ensure she received her full entitlement, not just the partial amount her son had initially provided.

Example 2: Multiple Properties and Partial Assignment

• Scenario: Mr. Davies owned several properties, including a primary residence, a rental apartment building, and a vacation cabin. Upon his death, his widow, Mrs. Davies, was assigned her dower interest in the primary residence by the estate. However, the estate administrators overlooked or intentionally withheld her dower interest in the rental apartment building and the vacation cabin.
• Illustration: In this situation, Mrs. Davies had received some dower (from the primary residence) but not her full entitlement across all of her late husband's real estate. She could have used a writ of dower to legally demand the assignment of her remaining dower rights in the rental property and the vacation cabin, ensuring she received her complete share as mandated by law.

Example 3: Land Sale and Unfulfilled Dower

• Scenario: Mr. Peterson died, and his heir, his nephew, quickly sold a large tract of land that Mr. Peterson owned to a developer. The nephew assigned Mrs. Peterson, the widow, a small cash sum, claiming it was her full dower. However, Mrs. Peterson knew her dower right was a lifetime interest in one-third of the actual land, not just a small cash payment, and that the assigned amount was far less than her due.
• Illustration: Even though the land had been sold, Mrs. Peterson still had a dower right attached to it. Since she had received only a partial and inadequate "assignment" (the small cash sum) instead of her full legal interest in the property, she could have initiated a writ of dower against the nephew or even the new landowner to secure her rightful, remaining dower interest in the property itself, or its equivalent value.