Bava Kamma 8A

עידית וזיבורית ⁠– נזקין בעידית, ובעל חוב וכתובת אשה בזיבורית.

If he has only superior-quality and inferior-quality land, damages are paid from the superior-quality land, and payments owed to a creditor and payments of a woman’s marriage contract are made from the inferior-quality land.

קתני מיהא מציעא: בינונית וזיבורית ⁠– נזקין ובעל חוב בבינונית, וכתובת אשה בזיבורית. ואי אמרת בשלו הן שמין; תעשה בינונית שלו ⁠– כעידית, וידחה בעל חוב אצל זיבורית!

The Talmud explains how this baraita poses a challenge: In any event, the baraita teaches in the middle clause: If he owns only intermediate-quality and inferior-quality land, payments for damages and payments owed to a creditor are made from the intermediate-quality land, and payments of a woman’s marriage contract are made from the inferior-quality land. This clause demonstrates that the quality of land is appraised objectively based on the standard of the world at large. The reason for this is that if you say that the court appraises land based on the quality of the land of the one liable for the damage, let his intermediate-quality land be classified as superior-quality land, as that is the best land he owns, and consequently, the creditor should be directed to collect the debt from the inferior-quality land.

הכא במאי עסקינן ⁠– כגון שהיתה לו עידית, ומכרה.

The Talmud rejects this: With what are we dealing here? This is a case where at the time the borrower took the loan he also had superior-quality land and he subsequently sold it. Accordingly, no matter how land is appraised, at the time that the loan was given his intermediate-quality land would be classified as being of intermediate quality. Consequently, the creditor’s lien on the borrower’s land, which took effect from the moment the loan was given, takes effect with regard to the intermediate-quality land. Therefore, the creditor retains his right to collect from that land, regardless of the fact that by the time of collection it was the borrower’s best land and at that point could be reclassified as land of superior quality.