1. Hist. A tenant whose failure to pay rent or perform prescribed services gives the landowner the right to recover possession of the land. — Also spelled cessor; cessure.
2. The termination of a right or interest.
“A proviso of cesser is usually annexed to long terms, raised by mortgage, marriage settlement, or annuity, whereby the term is declared to be determinable on the happening of a certain event; and until the event provided for in the declaration of cesser has occurred, the term continues.” 4 James Kent, Commentaries on American Law *90 (George Comstock ed., 11th ed. 1866).
“The cesser of a term, annuity or the like takes place when it determines or comes to an end. The expression was formerly chiefly used with reference to long terms of years created by a settlement for the purpose of securing portions, etc., given to the objects of the settlement. In such cases, it was usual to introduce a proviso that the term should cease when the trusts thereof were satisfied (as, for example, on the death of the annuitant where the term was created to secure an annuity). This was called a proviso for cesser.” Jowitt’s Dictionary of English Law 308 (John Burke ed., 2d ed. 1977).
