Legal Definitions - donative intent

Donative intent refers to the conscious and deliberate desire of a person (the "donor") to make a gift to another person (the "recipient") without expecting anything in return. It means the donor intends to permanently give up ownership and control over the item or property being transferred, with no strings attached, no expectation of payment, and not under any pressure or mistake.

For a transfer of property to be legally recognized as a gift, donative intent is a crucial element. Without it, the transfer might be considered a loan, a contractual exchange, a transfer for convenience, or even a mistake, rather than a true gift.

Here are some examples illustrating donative intent:

• Example 1: A Birthday Present

  When Aunt Carol hands her nephew, Leo, a new bicycle for his birthday and says, "Happy birthday, Leo! This is all yours," she clearly demonstrates donative intent. She consciously desires to give him the bicycle as a gift, expects nothing in return, and intends for him to have full ownership and control over it. This transfer is a pure gift because her intent is to enrich Leo without any reciprocal obligation.

• Example 2: Transferring Funds for Convenience vs. a Gift

  Mr. Davies, an elderly man, adds his daughter, Sarah, as a co-owner on his bank account. He tells her, "I'm doing this so you can pay my bills and manage my finances if I become unable to." While Sarah's name is on the account, Mr. Davies's primary motivation is convenience and financial management, not to immediately transfer half of the account's funds to her as a gift. In this scenario, a court might find a lack of donative intent regarding the funds themselves, as the transfer was for a specific administrative purpose rather than an outright gift of the money to Sarah.

• Example 3: A Conditional Promise vs. a Gift

  A university alumnus, Ms. Rodriguez, pledges $100,000 to her alma mater, stating, "I want to donate this money to establish a scholarship fund for deserving students." This statement, coupled with the act of pledging, demonstrates clear donative intent. She intends to permanently surrender control of the money to the university for a specific charitable purpose, expecting no personal benefit or return. However, if she had said, "I'll give the university $100,000 if they name the new library wing after me," this would likely be considered a conditional promise or a contractual offer, not a pure gift made with donative intent, because it involves an expectation of a specific return or action from the university.