A life tenant who holds land without impeachment for waste is not liable for which type of waste?

• A. Not liable for equitable waste
• B. Liable for common law waste
• C. Not liable for common law waste
• D. Liable for all types of waste

Answer: (C)

The key idea is how the grant language affects a life tenant’s liability for waste. When a life estate is created “without impeachment for waste,” the life tenant is shielded from liability in a common-law action for waste. In other words, acts that would typically be considered common-law waste aren’t prosecutable against the life tenant in a typical law court simply because the grant says they aren’t impeached for waste.

However, this protection isn’t a blanket immunity from all forms of waste. Equity can still intervene if the life tenant’s actions amount to equitable waste—acts that seriously diminish the property’s value or the future interests of the remainderman. So the life tenant isn’t liable for common-law waste, but they could be liable for equitable waste under the right circumstances.

That’s why the best answer is that a life tenant holding land without impeachment for waste is not liable for common-law waste.