Legal Definitions - legitima potestas

Legitima potestas is a legal principle, primarily found in Scots law, that refers to the lawful authority or power an individual possesses. This power is particularly emphasized in the context of managing and transferring one's own property or assets.

Here are some examples to illustrate this concept:

• Selling a Personal Asset: Imagine a person who owns a valuable painting. They decide they no longer wish to keep it and choose to sell it to an art collector.

  This scenario demonstrates legitima potestas because, as the rightful owner of the painting, the individual possesses the lawful power to dispose of it as they see fit. Their authority to enter into a sale agreement and transfer ownership is legally recognized and protected.

• Creating a Will: Consider an individual who is planning their estate and drafts a will to specify how their money, real estate, and other possessions should be distributed among their family members and chosen beneficiaries after their death.

  By creating a will, the individual is exercising their legitima potestas. They are lawfully directing the future disposition of their property, ensuring their wishes regarding their assets are legally binding and followed after they pass away.

• Gifting Property: An elderly woman decides to give her antique jewelry collection to her granddaughter as a gift during her lifetime.

  In this instance, the woman is exercising her legitima potestas. As the legal owner of the jewelry, she has the lawful power to transfer ownership of these items as a gift, and this act of disposition is legally valid and recognized.