Gift (law)
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| Property law |
|---|
| Part of the common law series |
| Acquisition of property |
| Gift · Adverse possession · Deed |
| Lost, mislaid, and abandoned property |
| Bailment · Licence |
| Estates in land |
| Allodial title · Fee simple |
| Life estate · Fee tail · Future interest |
| Concurrent estate · Leasehold estate |
| Condominiums |
| Conveyancing of interests in land |
| Bona fide purchaser · Torrens title |
| Estoppel by deed · Quitclaim deed |
| Mortgage · Equitable conversion |
| Action to quiet title |
| Limiting control over future use |
| Restraint on alienation |
| Rule against perpetuities |
| Rule in Shelley's Case |
| Doctrine of worthier title |
| Nonpossessory interest in land |
| Easement · Profit |
| Covenant running with the land |
| Equitable servitude |
| Related topics |
| Fixtures · Waste · Partition |
| Riparian water rights |
| Lateral and subjacent support |
| Assignment · Nemo dat |
| Other areas of the common law |
| Contract law · Tort law |
| Wills and trusts |
| Criminal Law · Evidence |
A gift, in the law of property, has a very specific meaning. In order for a gift to be legally effective, the grantor must have intended to give the gift to the grantee. The gift must actually be delivered to and accepted by the grantee.
Gifts can be inter vivos - during the life of the grantor - or causa mortis - made by the grantor in anticipation of his own death. A gift causa mortis (or donatio mortis causa) is not effective unless the grantor actually dies of the impending peril that he or she had contemplated when giving the gift.
[edit] Intention
The grantor (or donor) of the gift must have a present intent to make a gift of the property to the grantee. A promise to make a gift in the future is unenforceable, and legally meaningless, even if the promise is accompanied by a present transfer of the physical property in question.
Suppose, for example, that a man gives a woman a ring and tells her that it is for her next birthday and to hold on to it until then. The man has not made a present gift, and could legally demand the ring back on the day before the woman's birthday.
It is important to bear in mind, however, the distinction between a promise to make a gift in the future, and conditions attached to a gift. In the majority of jurisdictions within the United States, oral conditions attached along with the present transfer of a gift, such as "I'll give you this you if 'X' happens tomorrow," if accompanied by the actual delivery of the gift and donee acceptance, do not make the gift transfer unenforceable; and further, no regard is given to the fulfillment of the attached condition (so even if 'X' does not happen, the gift transfer is still valid and irrevocable). This situation is different from a promise to make a gift in the future; here, there is actual delivery of the gift, donor acceptance, and there is present donative intent, if coupled with a (usually legally meaningless) caveat. However, a minority of US jurisdictions may completely invalidate the gift transfer if any such conditions are attached, as these conditions are seen to invalidate the donative intent (view the conditions as a promise to make a gift in the future). A minority of progressive jurisdictions, however, honor both intents, and allow for a valid gift transfer only if the attached condition is honored.
[edit] Delivery
The gift must be delivered to the grantee. If the gift is of a type that can not be delivered in the conventional sense - a house, or a bank account - the delivery can be effected by a constructive delivery, wherein a tangible item allowing access to the gift - a deed or key to the house, a passbook for the bank account - is delivered instead. Symbolic delivery is also sometimes permissible where manual delivery is impractical, such as the delivery of a key that does actually open anything, but is intended to symbolize the transfer of ownership.
Certain forms of property must be transferred following particular formalities described by statute law. In the United Kingdom, real property must be transferred by a written deed (s. 52 Law of Property Act 1925). The transfer of equitable interests must be performed in writing by the owner or their agent.
[edit] Acceptance
The grantee (or donee) must accept the gift. However, because people generally accept gifts, acceptance will be presumed, so long as the grantee does not expressly reject the gift. A rejection of the gift destroys the gift, so that a grantee can not revive a once-rejected gift by later accepting it. In order for such an acceptance to be effective, the grantor would have to extend the offer of the gift again.
