§ 151. Ownership All property has an owner, whether that owner is the government, and the property public, or the owner an individual, and the property private. § 152. Persons who may own property Any person, whether citizen or alien, may take, hold, and dispose of property within the Canal Zone. Sec. CHAPTER 11-MODIFICATIONS OF OWNERSHIP SUBCHAPTER I-INTERESTS IN PROPERTY 181. Ownership as absolute or qualified. 182. Absolute ownership. 183. Qualified ownership. 184. Several ownership. 185. Ownership of several persons. 186. Joint interest. 187. Partnership interest. 188. Interest in common. 189. Community property. 190. Interests classified as to time. 191. Present interest. 192. Future interest. 193. Perpetual interest. 194. Limited interest. 195. Kinds of future interests. 196. Vested future interests. 197. Contingent future interests. 198. Two or more future interests. 199. Future interests; improbability of contingency. 200. Future interests; posthumous children. 201. Transfer of title to future interests. 202. Future interests; possibilities. 203. Future interests which are recognized. 204. United States bonds or obligations; title upon death of owner or co-owner. SUBCHAPTER II-CONDITIONS OF OWNERSHIP 231. Time of enjoyment of property. 232. Conditions precedent or subsequent. 233. Conditions precedent requiring wrongful or unlawful acts. 234. Conditions in restraint of marriage. 235. Conditions restraining alienation. SUBCHAPTER III—RESTRAINTS UPON ALIENATION 251. Rule against perpetuities; vesting of interest in property. 252. Same; determination of permissible period for vesting of future interest. SUBCHAPTER IV-ACCUMULATIONS 271. Dispositions of income. 272. Accumulations which are void. 273. Accumulation of income. 274. Directions for accumulation beyond limit. 275. Destitute beneficiaries. Subchapter I-Interests in Property § 181. Ownership as absolute or qualified The ownership of property is either: (1) absolute; or (2) qualified. § 182. Absolute ownership The ownership of property is absolute when one person has the absolute dominion over it, and may use it or dispose of it according to his pleasure, subject only to general laws. § 183. Qualified ownership The ownership of property is qualified when: (1) it is shared with one or more persons; (2) the time of enjoyment is deferred or limited; or (3) the use is restricted. § 184. Several ownership The ownership of property by one person is designated as a sole or several ownership. § 185. Ownership of several persons The ownership of property by several persons is either of: (1) joint interests; (2) partnership interests; (3) interests in common; or (4) community interest of husband and wife. § 186. Joint interest A joint interest is one owned by two or more persons in equal shares, by a title created by a single will or transfer, when expressly declared in the will or transfer to be a joint tenancy, or by transfer from a sole owner to himself and others, or from tenants in common or joint tenants to themselves or some of them, or to themselves or any of them and others, or from a husband and wife, when holding title as community property or otherwise to themselves or to themselves and others or to one of them and to another or others, when expressly declared in the transfer to be a joint tenancy, or when granted or devised to executors or trustees as joint tenants. A joint tenancy in personal property may be created by a written transfer, instrument, or agreement. § 187. Partnership interest A partnership interest is one owned by several persons, in partnership, for partnership purposes. § 188. Interest in common An interest created in favor of several persons in their own right is an interest in common, unless : (1) acquired by them in partnership, for partnership purposes; (2) declared in its creation to be a joint interest, as provided by section 186 of this title; or (3) acquired as community property. 189. Community property Community property is property acquired by husband and wife, or either, during marriage, when not acquired as the separate property of either or as joint interests or interests in common. § 190. Interests classified as to time In respect to the time of enjoyment, an interest in property is either: (1) present or future; and (2) perpetual or limited. § 191. Present interest A present interest entitles the owner to the immediate possession of the property. § 192. Future interest A future interest entitles the owner to the possession of the property only at a future time. § 193. Perpetual interest A perpetual interest has a duration equal to that of the property. § 194. Limited interest A limited interest has a duration less than that of the property. § 195. Kinds of future interests A future interest is either: (1) vested; or § 196. Vested future interests A future interest is vested when there is a person in being who would have a right, defeasible or indefeasible, to the immediate possession of the property, upon the ceasing of the intermediate or precedent interest. § 197. Contingent future interests A future interest is contingent while the person in whom, or the event upon which, it is limited to take effect remains uncertain. § 198. Two or more future interests Two or more future interests may be created to take effect in the alternative, so that if the first in order fails to vest, the next in succession shall be substituted for it, and take effect accordingly. § 199. Future interests; improbability of contingency A future interest is not void merely because of the improbability of the contingency on which it is limited to take effect. $ 200. Same; posthumous children When a future interest is limited to successors, heirs, issue or children, posthumous children are entitled to take in the same manner as if living at the death of their parent. § 201. Same; transfer of title Future interests pass by succession, will, and transfer, in the same manner as present interests. § 202. Same; possibilities A mere possibility, such as the expectancy of an heir apparent, is not an interest. § 203. Future interests which are recognized A future interest in property is recognized by the law only as defined in this title. § 204. United States bonds or obligations; title upon death of owner or co-owner United States bonds or obligations, however designated, or whenever issued, which are registered in the names of two persons as coowners in the alternative, shall, upon the death of either of the registered co-owners, become the sole and absolute property of the surviving co-owner, unless the Federal laws under which the bonds or other obligations were issued or the regulations governing the issuance thereof, provide otherwise. United States bonds or obligations, however designated, or whenever issued, which are registered in the name of one person payable on death to a named survivor, shall, upon the death of the registered owner, become the sole and absolute property of the surviving beneficiary named therein, unless the Federal laws under which the bonds or other obligations were issued or the regulations governing the issuance thereof, provide otherwise. This section may not be construed to mean that prior to the enactment hereof the law of the Canal Zone was otherwise than as herein provided. Subchapter II-Conditions of Ownership 8 231. Time of enjoyment of property The time when the enjoyment of property is to begin or end may be determined by computation, or be made to depend on events. In the latter case, the enjoyment is upon condition. § 232. Conditions precedent or subsequent Conditions are precedent or subsequent. The former fix the beginning, the latter the ending, of the right. § 233. Conditions precedent requiring wrongful or unlawful acts If a condition precedent requires the performance of an act wrong of itself, the instrument containing it is so far void, and the right cannot exist. If it requires the performance of an act not wrong of itself, but otherwise unlawful, the instrument takes effect and the condition is void. § 234. Conditions in restraint of marriage Conditions imposing restraints upon marriage, except upon the marriage of a minor, are void; but this does not affect limitations where the intent was not to forbid marriage, but only to give the use until marriage. § 235. Conditions restraining alienation Conditions restraining alienation, when repugnant to the interest created, are void. Subchapter III-Restraints Upon Alienation § 251. Rule against perpetuities; vesting of interest in property An interest in real or personal property is not valid unless it must vest, if at all, not later than 21 years after some life in being at the creation of the interest and any period of gestation involved in the situation to which the limitation applies. The lives selected to govern the time of vesting must not be so numerous nor so situated that evidence of their deaths is likely to be unreasonably difficult to obtain. This section makes effective in the Canal Zone the American commonlaw rule against perpetuities. § 252. Same; determination of permissible period for vesting of future interest The period of time during which an interest is destructible pursuant to the uncontrolled volition and for the exclusive personal benefit of the person having such a power of destruction is not to be included in determining the permissible period for the vesting of an interest within the rule against perpetuities. Subchapter IV-Accumulations § 271. Dispositions of income Disposition of the income of property to accrue and to be received at any time subsequent to the execution of the instrument creating the disposition, are governed by the rules prescribed in this chapter in relation to future interests. § 272. Accumulations which are void Directions for the accumulation of the income of property, except such as are allowed by this chapter, are void. § 273. Accumulation of income An accumulation of the income of property may be directed by a will, trust, or transfer in writing sufficient to pass the property or create the trust out of which the fund is to arise, for the benefit of one or more persons, objects, or purposes, but may not extend beyond the time permitted by this title for the vesting of future interests. § 274. Directions for accumulation beyond limit If the direction for an accumulation of the income of property is for a longer term than is limited by section 273 of this title, the direction only, whether separable or not from the other provisions of the instrument, is void as respects the time beyond the limit prescribed in that section, and no other part of the instrument is affected by the void portion of the direction. § 275. Destitute beneficiaries When a person for whose benefit an accumulation of income has been directed is destitute of other sufficient means of support or education, the proper court, upon application, may direct a suitable sum to be applied thereto out of the fund directed to be accumulated for his benefit. Sec. CHAPTER 13-RIGHTS OF OWNERS 311. Increase of property. 312. Income of property with respect to future interests. § 311. Increase of property The owner of a thing owns also all its products and accessories. § 312. Income of property with respect to future interests When, in consequence of a valid limitation of a future interest, there is a suspension of the power of alienation or of the ownership, during the continuation of which the income is undisposed of, and a valid direction for its accumulation is not given, the income belongs to the person presumptively entitled to the next eventual interest. Sec. CHAPTER 15 TERMINATION OF OWNERSHIP 341. Defeat of future interests. 342. Alienation or loss of precedent interest as affecting future interest. 343. I'remature determination of precedent interest as affecting future interest. 8 341. Defeat of future interests (a) A future interest, depending on the contingency of the death of a person without successors, heirs, issue, or children, is defeated by the birth of a posthumous child of that person, capable of taking by succession. (b) A future interest may be defeated in a manner or by an act or means which the party creating it provided for or authorized in the creation thereof. A future interest, thus liable to be defeated, is not, on that ground, void in its creation. § 342. Alienation or loss of precedent interest as affecting future interest A future interest is not defeated or barred by an alienation or other act of the owner of the intermediate or precedent interest, or by destruction of the precedent interest by forfeiture, surrender, merger, or otherwise, except as provided by section 343 of this title, or where a forfeiture is imposed by statute as a penalty for the violation thereof. |