Virginia Code 64.2-2508: Proceeds of insurance; bona fide payment by insurance company or obligor
A. Insurance proceeds payable to the slayer as the beneficiary or assignee of any policy or certificate of insurance or bond or other contractual agreement on the life of the decedent or as the survivor of a joint life policy shall be paid to the estate of the decedent, unless the policy or certificate designates some person as an alternative beneficiary to the slayer.
Terms Used In Virginia Code 64.2-2508
- Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. Source: OCC
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Decedent: means any person whose life has been taken as a result of murder or voluntary manslaughter. See Virginia Code 64.2-2500
- Decedent: A deceased person.
- Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
- Person: includes any individual, corporation, partnership, association, cooperative, limited liability company, trust, joint venture, government, political subdivision, or any other legal or commercial entity and any successor, representative, agent, agency, or instrumentality thereof. See Virginia Code 1-230
- Slayer: means any person (i) who is convicted of the murder or voluntary manslaughter of the decedent or, (ii) in the absence of such conviction, who is determined, whether before or after his death, by a court of appropriate jurisdiction by a preponderance of the evidence to have committed one of the offenses listed in clause (i) resulting in the death of the decedent. See Virginia Code 64.2-2500
B. If the decedent is the beneficiary or assignee of any policy or certificate of insurance on the life of the slayer, the proceeds shall be paid to the estate of the decedent upon the death of the slayer, unless the policy names some person other than the slayer or his estate as an alternative beneficiary, or unless the slayer, by naming a new beneficiary or by assigning the policy, performs an act that would have deprived the decedent of his interest in the policy if he had been living.
C. No insurance company shall be subject to liability on a policy insuring the life of the decedent if (i) as a part of the slayer’s plan to murder the decedent, such policy was procured and maintained by the slayer or as a result of actions taken or participated in by the slayer whether directly or indirectly and (ii) the decedent’s death resulted from the slayer’s act committed within two years from the date such policy was issued by the insurance company.
D. Any insurer making payment according to the terms of its policy or contract or any bank or other person performing an obligation for the slayer as one of several joint obligees shall not be subjected to additional liability by the terms of this section if such payment or performance is made without notice of circumstances bringing it within the provisions of this section.