Infant in Europe

Definition of Infant

A person under the age of twenty-one years ; an infant has not full legal capacity. He becomes of full age from the first moment of the day preceding the twenty-first anniversary of his birth.
The Infants’ Relief Act, 1874, provided that contracts entered into by infants for the repayment of money lent or goods supplied other than necessaries, and all accounts stated shall be null and void and incapable of ratification on the attainment of full age. See J)itcham v. IV or rail
By the Betting and Loans (Infants) Act, 1892, a promise after majority to repay money borrowed during minority is void as against all parties thereto, except to the extent of any money actually lent after majority. Other contracts are voidable by the infant unless for necessaries (q.v.) or for his benefit. See Clements v. L.N.W. Ry. Co. Contractual obligations attaching to property of which an infant becomes possessed are binding so long as he possesses the property, but he may repudiate the property and with it the obligations within a reasonable time after attaining majority (London & North Western Ry. v. M’ Michael (1850), 5 Ex. 114). An infant may take up shares in a limited company, and may repudiate all liability on attaining majority (Hamilton r. Vaughan Sherrin Co., [1894] 3 Ch. 589), but the infant cannot recover money paid for them unless there has been a total failure of consideration (Steinberg v. Scala (Leeds), Ltd., [1923] 2 Ch. 452). If an infant has paid for property and has consumed it or altered its condition, he cannot recover money paid for it (Valentini v. Canali (1889), 24 Q. B. D. 166). The other party to a contract, if adult, is bound (Holt v. Ward (1732), 2 Str. 937).
An infant is liable in tort, but where a tort arises out of a contract, which is itself not enforceable, the infant is not liable (Jennings r. Rundall (1799), 8 T. R. 335). Where an infant induces another to contract with him by representing that he is of full age he is liable to return or account for any property obtained under the contract (Lempriere r. Lange (1879), 12 Ch. D. 675) other than money. See Leslie v. ShieU

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Definition of Infant is, temporally, from A Concise Law Dictionary (1927). This page needs to be proofread.

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