An Act To Amend the Short Form Deeds Act

Sec. 1. 33 MRSA §772, sub-§1,  as enacted by PL 1999, c. 69, §1, is amended to read:

summary

This bill amends the Short Form Deeds Act to provide that a conveyance or reservation of real estate must be construed to convey or reserve an estate in fee simple, unless a different intention is clearly expressed in the instrument by a statement that the interest conveyed or received is an interest other than an estate in fee, by a limiting of the duration of the interest to a period less than perpetual duration or by an explicit restriction of the interest to the use and benefit only of the person or persons to whom it is conveyed or reserved. This bill is submitted in response to the decision of the Supreme Judicial Court in Tarason v. Wesson Realty, LLC, 2012 ME 47, 40 A.3d 1005.