Shelley’s Rule
Definition
Also termed the "Rule in Shelley's Case," a rule providing that any conveyance, which purports both to convey a present possessory estate of definite duration (such as a life estate) to a grantee and to create the corresponding remainder entirely in the grantee's heirs, instead results in the conveyance of the grantor's entire estate to the grantee alone, because both the present and future estates are deemed to be merged in the grantee.