The right of entry refers to the future interest that the original grantor holds when giving a possessory estate to another.
A fee simple estate (a type of freehold estate) grants the property holder a total current right over a real property. On the other hand, for a fee simple defeasible, there is a possibility that the current right over a real property may be lost. There are three subcategories of the fee simple defeasible: a fee simple determinable, a fee simple subject to condition subsequent, and a fee simple subject to an executory limitation.
The right of entry, which is also called the right of reentry, concerns the fee simple subject to condition subsequent. In a fee simple subject to condition subsequent, the original grantor provides the land to the owner with a stated condition. If the stated condition occurs, then the estate holder could lose ownership of the land, but the right to land transfers only when the original grantor decides to regain the right to land. If the original grantor elects to act upon the transfer after the violation of the stated condition, the right to land goes back to the original grantor.
An example of a right of entry within the fee simple subject to a condition subsequent is as follows: “from O to A, on the condition that A uses the land as a religious institution.” As O grants the land to A under this fee simple subject to a condition subsequent, O holds the future right to reclaim the land as a right of entry. If A is caught using the land as something else than a religious institution, then O may either take action to reclaim the right to the land or let A keep the right to land despite the breach of condition.
See: real property, future interest, possessory interests, fee simple subject to condition subsequent.
[Last updated in March of 2024 by the Wex Definitions Team]
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