Gifts are of two kinds: inter vivos and causa mortis.

A gift inter vivos is a voluntary, actual and immediate transfer of a thing by one living person to another living person. Actual delivery is essential to complete the transfer. Neither the common law or the equity courts, will attempt to enforce an executory promise of a gift.

A gift once completely executed is binding on the parties and cannot be revoked by the donor; it may be set aside, however, if in fraud of creditors.29

Gifts causa mortis are gifts of personal property, made in prospect of death at no very remote period, and which are dependent upon the condition of death occurring substantially as expected by the donor, and that the same be not revoked before his death.30

Gifts causa mortis were introduced into the common law from the civil law.

Three elements are necessary in every gift of causa mortis. (1) The donor must make the gift in anticipation of his own death; (2) the donor must actually die from the cause from which he expected death; (3) the property must be delivered.

A gift causa mortis is a conditional gift, the donor may revoke such a gift at any time before his death, and his recovery always revokes it. Gifts of this character are not favored by the law.

27 Volume X, Sub. 32.

28 Vol. IX, Sub. 26.

29 Smith on Personal Property,

Sec. 78

30 Reed vs. Spaulding, 42 N. H., 114; Carpenter vs. Dodge, 20 Vt., 595; Wallace vs. Burdell, 97 N. Y., 131.