In what year was the Married Womens Property Act passed into British law, that recognised husband and wife as separate legal entities, and gave married women the legal right to sue and be sued, be liable for their own debts, hold stock in their own names and to own, buy and sell separate property?
Married Women's Property Act 1882 for their benefit). Married Women's Property Act 1882 The Married Women's Property Act 1882 (45 & 46 Vict. c.75) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that significantly altered English law regarding the property rights of married women, which besides other matters allowed married women to own and control property in their own right. The Act applied in England (and Wales) and Ireland, but did not extend to Scotland. The Married Women’s Property Act was a model for similar legislation in other British territories. For example, Victoria passed legislation in 1884, New South Wales in 1889, and
Married Women's Property Act 1882 political lobbying, the Married Women’s Property Act addressed the grievances presented by English women. The Act altered the common law doctrine of coverture to include the wife’s right to own, buy and sell her separate property. Wives' legal identities were also restored, as the courts were forced to recognize a husband and a wife as two separate legal entities, in the same manner as if the wife was a feme sole. Married women’s legal rights included the right to sue and be sued. Any damages a wife might pay would be her own responsibility, instead of that of her husband.