The Married Women's Property Act of 1870 changed the game for Victorian women. Prior to this act, any property and wages earned or inherited by a woman became her husband's resources; this was possible due to the fact that, under law, women became their husband's property after marriage. The 1870 Property Act changed this status quo by legalizing women's keep of: wages and investments separate from husbands', inheritance,  and rented or inherited property. The act also made both parents liable for their children.  While these were great steps towards women's individualization under law, the 1870 act still left married women financially dependent on their husbands, who still controlled a good portion of household finances and property. There was also a glaring lack of reciprocity to this act: it only applied to new marriages post-Act. Women married prior to 1870 still retained a complete lack of control over their own finances. 

The Married Women's Property Act of 1882 furthered women's autonomy by legalizing their ability to keep and retain property (own, buy, and sell) along with the money earned from said property. Women were also able to keep their wages and inheritance. Both acts were eventually repealed and replaced with more substantial laws.

Admittedly, these two acts don't impact Jane Eyre in any way whatsoever since they were passed decades after the book was published. What they do accomplish, however, is point out how much freedom Jane gave up in her marriage to Rochester. Not only was she signing up to be his nurse, but she essentially signed away all of the money she inherited from her uncle. Jane, herself, points out how liberating the inheritance could be, especially for her cousins, when discussing the news with St. John. And she does feel free for a time, a weight being lifted off her shoulders by not having to worry about money quite so much. Now the book doesn't expressly discuss the financial issues; the most readers are told in these last couple of chapters is that Rochester considers himself poor with the loss of Thornfield Hall. If he does get Jane's money, as is likely since their marriage took place before laws were in place securing the fortune as hers, that would certainly lift them up a bit from any chance of poverty Rochester fears.

Works Cited

Loudermelk, Shana. “Married Women's Property Act, 1870 and 1882.” Towards Emancipation?, 2019, hist259.web.unc.edu/marriedwomenspropertyact/.