DEADHAND CONTROL
deadhand control.The convergence of various legal doctrines that allow a decedent’s control
of wealth to influence the conduct of a living beneficiary; esp., the use of executory interests that
vest at some indefinite and remote time in the future to restrict alienability and to ensure that
property remains in the hands of a particular family or organization. • Examples include the lawful
use of conditional gifts, contingent future interests, and the Claflin-trust principle. The rule against
perpetuities restricts certain types of deadhand control, which is sometimes referred to either as
the power of the mortua manus (dead hand) or as trying to retain property in mortua manu. See
RULE AGAINST PERPETUITIES. [Blacks Law 8th]