Also known as:lapses · lapsed · lapsing · expiration · termination
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
The termination of a right or interest that occurs when a beneficiary or holder fails to satisfy a required condition or when a specified period or event causes the interest to end.
Sources & Authorities
How it applies
Common Examples
6
Client Funds After Representation Ends
Layla Lane's lawyer held settlement proceeds in a trust account after her case concluded. When Layla failed to claim the funds within the required period following termination of the representation, the interest lapsed and the lawyer had to address the unclaimed property under professional conduct rules.
Holdover Tenant After Lease Ends
Luis Lopez remained in the apartment after his lease term expired without asserting any new claim of title. His continued possession created an estate at sufferance that lapsed when the landlord pursued eviction proceedings to regain the property.
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Cases
Statutes
Federal Rules
Uniform Acts
Model Codes
Common Law
Restatements
Casebooks
Legacy Motors authorized Lorenzo Lugo to negotiate supplier contracts. When the company sent notice that it no longer consented to his actions, the agent's apparent authority lapsed and third parties could no longer rely on it for new deals.
Tenant Vacating After Lease Breach
Leah Lamb discovered that her landlord had failed to maintain the premises as required by the lease. She vacated the property, notified the landlord of her decision, and the lease terminated by lapse of her right to remain.
Consent to Enter Land Expires
Lena Lawson granted Lance Lee permission to store equipment on her lot for a six-month project. After the project ended and the specified period lapsed, Lee's privilege to remain on the land terminated and any further presence became a trespass.
Trust Termination and Distribution
Liberty Trust held assets for the benefit of several relatives under terms that ended when the youngest beneficiary reached a stated age. Upon that event the trust terminated by lapse and the trustee distributed the remaining property according to the trust purposes.
Common questions
Frequently Asked
4
What happens to a specific gift in a will when the beneficiary dies before the testator?+
The gift lapses and fails. Failed specific gifts fall to the residuary clause if one exists, otherwise to intestacy.
How do anti-lapse statutes affect a lapsed gift?+
Anti-lapse statutes provide a substitute gift to the predeceased beneficiary's surviving descendants when the beneficiary meets the required degree of relationship to the testator.
Does a lapsed residuary gift pass to other residuary takers under modern law?+
Under the modern trend a lapsed portion of the residuary passes to the other residuary takers rather than falling to intestacy.
When does consent to enter land lapse under tort principles?+
Consent lapses upon the doing of any act, the happening of any event, or the passage of any specified period of time that restricts the consent.
410 U.S. 113 (1973)Constitutional Law
…human gestation period is so short that the pregnancy will come to term before the usual appellate process is complete. If that termination makes a case moot, pregnancy litigation seldom will survive much beyond the trial stage, and appellate review will be effectively denied. Our law should not be that rigid. We therefore…