A bequest may be made with the condition super-added that it shall cease to have effect in case a specified uncertain event shall happen, or in case a specified uncertain event shall not happen.
Illustrations:
(i) An estate is bequeathed to A for his life, with a proviso that, in case he shall cut down a certain wood, the bequest shall cease to have any effect. A cuts down the wood. He loses his life-interest in the estate.
(ii) An estate is bequeathed to A, provided that, if he marries under the age of 25 without the consent of the executors named in the will, the estate shall cease to belong to him. A marries under 25 without the consent of the executors. The estate ceases to belong to him.
(iii) An estate is bequeathed to A, provided that, if he shall not go to England within three years after the testator's death, his interest in the estate shall cease. A does not go to England within the time prescribed. His interest in the estate ceases.
(iv) An estate is bequeathed to A, with a proviso that, if she becomes a nun, she shall cease to have any interest in the estate. A becomes a nun. She loses her interest under the will.
(v) A fund is bequeathed to A for life, and, after his death, to B, if B shall be then living, with a proviso that, if B shall become a nun, the bequest to her shall cease to have any effect. B becomes a nun in the lifetime of A. She thereby loses her contingent interest in the fund.
Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 134
Section 134 validates testamentary conditions subsequent that cause a bequest to cease and determine upon the happening or non-happening of a specified uncertain event.
A condition subsequent under Section 134 (such as ceasing to reside in a family mansion or failing to maintain an ancestral deity) must be precisely drafted; if the condition is vague or uncertain, courts will declare it void for uncertainty.