future interests in property
Definitions from Case Law · United States Supreme Court
Definitions from Case Law
From 312 U.S. 399 - United States v. Pelzer · 1941Most cited · 624 citing opinions
any interest or estate, whether vested or contingent, limited to commence in possession or enjoyment at a future date
How the Supreme Court has restated “future interests in property”
Each Supreme Court definition of “future interests in property,” sized by how often later courts cited it. “Change” is measured by wording overlap with earlier definitions — a rough signal, not a semantic judgment.
How often courts cite the cases defining “future interests in property”
Court decisions citing the 3 opinions that defined “future interests in property” — 1,247 in all, by decade. Counts are citations to the defining cases as a whole, not verified uses of the term. The dip in the most recent years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the latest years.
All 3 definitions, chronological · 1941–1945
interests 'limited to commence in use, possession, or enjoyment at some future date or time
Whatever puts the barrier of a substantial period between the will of the beneficiary or donee now to enjoy what has been given him and that enjoyment makes the gift one of a future interest within the meaning of the regulation. The question is of time, not when title vests, but when enjoyment begins.