What Is Intended Beneficiary?

An intended beneficiary, in legal terms, refers to an individual or entity that is specifically named or designated in a contract as someone who is to receive benefits or rights under that contract, despite not being a direct party to the agreement.

Intended Beneficiary Explained

The concept of an intended beneficiary arises primarily in the context of contract law. It distinguishes between those who are parties to the contract and those who, while not parties, are intended by the contracting parties to receive some benefit from the contract's performance.

This designation allows intended beneficiaries to have legal rights to enforce the contract provisions that benefit them. There are typically two types of intended beneficiaries: creditor beneficiaries and donee beneficiaries.

Creditor beneficiaries are those to whom a promisor owes an obligation or debt that is to be discharged by the performance of the promise, while donee beneficiaries are those for whom a benefit is conferred as a gift.

The Term Intended Beneficiary in Different Legal Contexts

Though the concept is rooted in contract law, the implications of being an intended beneficiary can extend into other areas of law, such as estate planning and insurance.

For instance, a life insurance policyholder can designate an intended beneficiary of the policy proceeds. Similarly, in estate law, a will or trust may specify the intended beneficiaries of the decedent's assets.

Common Misconceptions About the Meaning of Intended Beneficiary

A common misconception is that any third party benefiting from a contract is an intended beneficiary with legal rights to enforce the contract.

However, only those specifically designated as beneficiaries in the contract have such rights. Third parties who benefit incidentally from a contract's performance, without being explicitly named or intended to benefit, are termed "incidental beneficiaries" and typically do not have enforceable rights under the contract.

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