Also known as: vi aut metum · force and fear · force or fear · duress
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A historical Latin phrase denoting conduct accomplished by force or fear. It identifies acts or manifestations of assent procured through physical compulsion or improper threats that overcome free will.
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Viktor Voronin, facing imminent foreclosure on his apartment building, met with Vanguard Bank officers who threatened immediate seizure of all rental income if he refused to sign a deed transferring title. Viktor signed the deed only after the officers physically blocked the exit and warned of total financial ruin. The bank later claimed the transfer was voluntary, but the circumstances show the deed was executed under force or fear.
Victoria Vernon, a solo practitioner, approached Valerie Viera at her home and demanded she hire Vernon for an upcoming personal-injury suit. When Viera declined, Vernon threatened to publicize embarrassing family matters unless Viera signed the retainer that afternoon. The encounter left Viera with no reasonable alternative but to agree.
Vaughn Valentine refused to sign a supplier contract with Volta Electric. The company's representative grabbed Vaughn's hand, forced the pen into it, and pressed his signature onto the page while Vaughn verbally protested. Because the signature resulted from direct physical compulsion, it created no effective manifestation of assent.
Vivian Velez, an elderly testator, was told by her caregiver that refusal to sign a new will leaving the estate to the caregiver would result in immediate removal from her home and placement in a state facility. Vivian signed the document to avoid the threatened harm. The resulting donative transfer is invalid because it was procured by duress.
Vance Vogel presented his fiancée with a premarital agreement minutes before the wedding ceremony and stated that the ceremony would be canceled and her family would be notified of damaging personal information unless she signed immediately. She signed to avoid public humiliation and loss of the wedding. The agreement is unenforceable because her consent was the product of duress.
After Vista Manufacturing's founder died, his children contested the will that left the company to a longtime employee. They introduced evidence that the employee had threatened to expose the founder's past criminal conduct unless the will was changed in his favor. The contestants bear the burden of proving that the will was procured by duress.
Vi aut metu requires either physical compulsion or an improper threat that leaves the victim no reasonable alternative. Mere economic pressure, without an improper threat or physical force, does not meet the standard.
A transfer procured by duress is voidable. Subsequent ratification may cure the defect only if the donor acts with full knowledge and without continued coercion.
Yes. Model Rule 7.3 prohibits solicitation that involves coercion, duress, or harassment, and conduct amounting to vi aut metu triggers that prohibition.
…for a spell of several hours pausing only for the subject's necessities in acknowledgment of the need to avoid a charge of duress that can be technically substantiated. In a serious case, the interrogation may continue for days, with the required intervals for food and sleep, but with no respite from the atmosphere of…