In modern U.S. usage, forfeiture is deprivation or destruction of a right in consequence of the non-performance of some obligation or condition. It can be accidental, and therefore is distinguished from

waiver A waiver is the voluntary relinquishment or surrender of some known right or privilege. A waiver is often written, such as a disclaimer that has been accepted, but it may also be spoken between two or more parties. When the right to hold a ...

. In the

law of England and Wales English law is the common law legal system of England and Wales, comprising mainly criminal law and civil law, each branch having its own courts and procedures. The judiciary is independent, and legal principles like fairness, equality be ...

, the forfeiture rule is the rule of law which prevents a killer from inheriting the estate of a person they have unlawfully killed. The term also refers to the rule in English law under which an insured person who makes a fraudulent

insurance claim Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to protect ...

loses their claim: this rule was derived from

common law Common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law primarily developed through judicial decisions rather than statutes. Although common law may incorporate certain statutes, it is largely based on prece ...

until the passage of the Insurance Act 2015, which "puts the common law rule of forfeiture on a statutory footing".

United States usage

Historically, forfeiture of a convict's land and other assets followed on from conviction for certain serious offences (and thus resulted from criminal activity rather than from a failure to act). A striking illustration of the practical effects of this rule is Giles Corey’s refusal to plead, in the

Salem Witch Trials The Salem witch trials were a series of hearings and prosecutions of people accused of witchcraft in Province of Massachusetts Bay, colonial Massachusetts between February 1692 and May 1693. More than 200 people were accused. Not everyone wh ...

, instead dying under '' peine forte et dure''. By refusing to plead he avoided the jurisdiction of the court and thus avoided conviction and the consequent forfeiture of his estate. Instead it passed to his sons. Forfeiture is broadly defined as the loss of property for failing to obey the law, and that property is generally lost to the state. A person may have a vested interest in property to be forfeit in two ways: ''In personum'' jurisdiction and ''in rem'' jurisdiction. ''In personum'' actions are against the owner of property, whereas ''in rem'' actions are taken directly against the object. ''In rem'' forfeiture actions may lead to unusual or even comedic case names, such as '' United States v. One Solid Gold Object in Form of a Rooster''. The

Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act is a United States federal law that provides for extended criminal penalties and a civil cause of action for acts performed as part of an ongoing criminal organization. RICO was e ...

provides for modern forfeiture actions in the United States with regards to criminal prosecution. This allows for forfeiture absent an ''in rem'' action. Any enterprise used to commit a crime under the RICO act may be seized. For example, a hotel owner who runs a prostitution business from his hotel and has bribed local officials to stay quiet could be subject to forfeiture under the act.

References

American legal terminology Law of obligations Rights Legal terminology {{law-stub

United States usage

See also

References