The action of ejectment is retained and may be brought as heretofore, subject to the provisions hereinafter contained. It may also be brought in the same cases in which a writ of right might have been brought prior to July 1, in the year eighteen hundred and fifty, in the state of Virginia, and by any person claiming real estate in fee or for life, or for years, either as heir, devisee, purchaser, or otherwise.
West Virginia Legal Code