It appears that one who is deaf and mute cannot make an alienation.

Explanation

At common law, a person who could neither hear nor speak was presumed to lack the capacity to convey property, because alienation requires the expression of informed consent.

Where this applies

• Under the historical common-law rule, a person who could neither hear nor speak was presumed unable to consent to a property transfer because expressing informed consent was deemed impossible.
• A court in the pre-modern era refuses to enforce a deed signed by a deaf-mute person, reasoning that without the ability to hear the terms read aloud and verbally assent, valid alienation could not occur.
• In a historical case, a guardian petitions to sell property on behalf of a deaf-mute ward, because the law presumed the ward lacked the capacity to make the conveyance personally.

See also

• 3.1.1 A person is a man considered in light of a certain status.