Legal Definitions - non valentia agere

Non valentia agere is a Latin legal principle that describes a situation where an individual or entity is legally unable to initiate a lawsuit. This inability stems from a specific legal incapacity or barrier, rather than simply lacking a valid claim. It means that, for legal reasons, the party cannot bring a case before a court in their own name.

Here are some examples illustrating this concept:

• Example 1: A Minor Child

  Imagine a 12-year-old child who is injured in an accident caused by another driver's negligence. While the child has a legitimate claim for damages, they are considered a minor under the law and lack the legal capacity to file a lawsuit independently. In this scenario, the child is subject to non valentia agere. A parent or legal guardian would typically need to file the lawsuit on the child's behalf, acting as a "next friend" or guardian ad litem, because the child themselves cannot legally initiate the action.

• Example 2: An Adult Declared Legally Incompetent

  Consider an elderly adult who, due to advanced dementia, has been legally declared incompetent by a court, and a conservator has been appointed to manage their affairs. If this individual had a claim against a financial advisor for mismanagement of their investments that occurred before their incapacitation, they would be in a state of non valentia agere. Due to their adjudicated legal incompetence, they cannot personally initiate legal proceedings. The court-appointed conservator would be the appropriate party to bring the lawsuit on their behalf.

• Example 3: A Dissolved Corporation

  Suppose a small manufacturing company, after several years of operation, formally dissolves and ceases to exist as a legal entity, completing all its winding-up procedures. A few months later, it is discovered that a former supplier had breached a contract with the company shortly before its dissolution. If the former corporation wished to sue the supplier, it would face non valentia agere. Once legally dissolved, the corporation no longer possesses the legal standing or capacity to sue in its own name. Any remaining claims would typically need to be handled by a designated trustee or through specific statutory provisions for dissolved entities, not by the defunct corporate entity itself.