Legal Definitions - common fine

A common fine is an agreement or compromise made in a fictitious or actual lawsuit to determine the true owner of land. It was used as a form of conveyance to disentail an estate. The terms of the compromise were entered upon a threefold indenture, and the parties obtained incontestable evidence and abundant security. The fine was a compromised fictitious personal action, originally designed as a method of ensuring security in conveyancing and only later being employed for the purpose of barring estates tail.

• Executed fine: A fine made on acknowledgment of the right of the grantee to land given to him as a gift from the grantor.
• Fine for alienation: A fee paid by a tenant to the landlord at the commencement of the tenancy to reduce the rent payments.
• Common fine: A sum of money due from a tenant to a lord to defray the cost of a court leet or to allow the litigants to try the action closer to home.
• Day fine: A fine payable over time, usually as a percentage of the defendant's earnings on a weekly or monthly basis.
• Excessive fine: A fine that is unreasonably high and disproportionate to the offense committed. The Eighth Amendment proscribes excessive fines.
• Fresh fine: A fine levied within the past year.

These examples illustrate the different types of fines that existed historically and their purposes. For instance, the executed fine was made on acknowledgment of the right of the grantee to land given to him as a gift from the grantor. The common fine was a sum of money due from a tenant to a lord to defray the cost of a court leet or to allow the litigants to try the action closer to home. The excessive fine was a fine that was unreasonably high and disproportionate to the offense committed.