Legal Definitions - heredipeta

A heredipeta is a historical legal term that describes an individual who actively seeks or pursues an inheritance, often by cultivating a relationship with a wealthy person in anticipation of receiving a legacy.

This term typically implies a deliberate and sometimes manipulative effort to be included in someone's will or to otherwise benefit from their estate.

• Example 1: After learning that his distant, wealthy aunt, Mrs. Albright, had no direct heirs, Mr. Henderson began visiting her frequently. He would bring her gifts, offer to run errands, and provide companionship, always subtly emphasizing his own financial difficulties and devotion. Mr. Henderson's consistent and calculated efforts to endear himself to Mrs. Albright, with the underlying goal of being included in her will, would historically characterize him as a heredipeta.

• Example 2: When the elderly and frail Mr. Davies, a man of considerable fortune, hired a new personal assistant, Ms. Evans, she quickly became indispensable. Ms. Evans began to subtly isolate Mr. Davies from his long-time friends and family, while frequently discussing his estate plans and suggesting that he should reward those who truly looked after him. Her deliberate actions to influence Mr. Davies's testamentary decisions for her own benefit exemplify the behavior of a heredipeta.