Legal Definitions - votum captandae mortis alienae

Votum Captandae Mortis Alienae

This Latin phrase translates to "an earnest desire for another's death." In legal contexts, it refers to a strong wish or incentive for someone else to die, often driven by the prospect of personal gain, such as inheriting property or receiving a financial benefit.

Historically, legal systems have been wary of arrangements that might create such an incentive, aiming to prevent situations where one person's financial well-being is directly tied to the premature death of another.

Here are some examples illustrating this concept:

• Life Insurance Beneficiary: Imagine a scenario where an individual takes out a very large life insurance policy on a distant acquaintance, naming themselves as the sole beneficiary, despite having no significant financial relationship or insurable interest. The law might view this arrangement with suspicion, as the potential for a substantial payout upon the acquaintance's death could be seen as creating a *votum captandae mortis alienae* – an incentive for the policyholder to desire the death of the insured person.

• Contested Will and Undue Influence: Consider an elderly, wealthy person who is frail and isolated. A new acquaintance quickly befriends them and, within a short period, persuades them to drastically change their will, making the acquaintance the primary heir, disinheriting long-standing family members. If the elderly person dies soon after, and the will is challenged, a court might investigate whether the acquaintance's actions created a situation where they had a strong, self-serving desire for the elderly person's death, thereby demonstrating *votum captandae mortis alienae* through their manipulative influence.

• Conditional Business Agreements: Suppose a business contract includes a clause stating that one partner will acquire the other partner's entire share of a highly profitable venture for a nominal sum, but only if the other partner dies within a specific timeframe. While such a clause might be intended to simplify succession, a court could scrutinize it. The significant financial advantage gained by one partner solely upon the other's death could be seen as creating *votum captandae mortis alienae*, as it establishes a powerful incentive for that partner to wish for the other's demise.