NON EST FACTUM

Lat. A plea by way of traverse, which occurs in debt on bond or other specialty, and also in covenant It denies that the deed mentioned in the declaration is the defendant’s deed. Under this, the defendant may contend at the trial that the deed, was never executed in point of fact; but he cannot deny its validity In point of law. The plea of non est factum is a denial of the execution of the instrument sued upon, and applies to notes or other instruments, as well as deeds, and applies only when the execution of the instrument is alleged to be the act of the party filing the plea, or adopted by him. Special non est factum. A form of the plea of non est factum, in debt on a specialty, by which the. defendant alleges that, although he executed the deed, yet it is in law “not his deed,” because of certain special circumstances which he proceeds to set out; as, where he delivered the deed as an escrow, and it was turned over to the plaintiff prematurely or without performance of the condition.