GA Bar Property Law 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Owen conveys Blackacre 'to A and her heirs, but if A ever uses the land for commercial purposes, then to B.' What interest does B hold?
- Executory interest (Correct answer)
- Remainder
- Reversion
- Right of entry
Correct answer: Executory interest
B holds an executory interest (shifting) because it follows a fee simple and cuts short A's estate upon a condition.
Question 2: Under the common law Rule Against Perpetuities, a future interest is void unless it must vest or fail within how many years after a life in being at the creation of the interest?
- 21 years (Correct answer)
- 30 years
- 99 years
- The grantor's lifetime
Correct answer: 21 years
The RAP requires that every future interest must vest or fail within 21 years after the death of a measuring life in being at the creation of the interest.
Question 3: A and B hold Blackacre as joint tenants. A conveys her interest to C without B's knowledge. What is the result?
- C and B hold as tenants in common (Correct answer)
- C and B hold as joint tenants
- The conveyance is void because B did not consent
- B automatically acquires sole ownership by survivorship
Correct answer: C and B hold as tenants in common
A's unilateral conveyance severs the joint tenancy, so C and B hold as tenants in common with no right of survivorship between them.
Question 4: Which form of concurrent ownership is available ONLY to legally married spouses under Georgia law?
- Tenancy by the entirety (Correct answer)
- Joint tenancy
- Tenancy in common
- Community property
Correct answer: Tenancy by the entirety
Tenancy by the entirety is a spousal co-ownership form recognized in Georgia that carries a right of survivorship and cannot be unilaterally severed.
Question 5: A life tenant who allows the property to deteriorate beyond normal wear and tear may be liable for which doctrine?
- Waste (Correct answer)
- Nuisance
- Trespass
- Conversion
Correct answer: Waste
The waste doctrine prohibits life tenants from acts (voluntary) or omissions (permissive) that permanently diminish the property's value to the remainderman.
Question 6: A conveys Blackacre 'to B for life, then to C if C survives B.' C's interest is best classified as a:
- Contingent remainder (Correct answer)
- Vested remainder subject to divestment
- Executory interest
- Reversion
Correct answer: Contingent remainder
C's remainder is contingent because it is subject to a condition precedent — C must survive B — which has not yet occurred.
Question 7: In a tenancy in common, which of the following is TRUE regarding a co-tenant's right to partition?
- Any co-tenant may bring a partition action as a matter of right (Correct answer)
- Partition requires unanimous consent of all co-tenants
- Partition is only available if the property produces no income
- A co-tenant may only partition by sale, never in kind
Correct answer: Any co-tenant may bring a partition action as a matter of right
Under Georgia law, any co-tenant in a tenancy in common has an absolute right to seek judicial partition, either in kind or by sale.
GA Bar Property Law 2
Owen conveys Blackacre 'to A and her heirs, but if A ever uses the land for commercial purposes, then to B.' What interest does B hold?