Duhaime's Law Dictionary Legatee Definition: The person to whom personal property is gifted pursuant to a will. Related Terms: Devise, Bequeath or Bequests, Legacy A person to whom a will has gifted money or some personal property or has excused a debt owed to the testator.1 The Wharton dictionary: "Legatee: one who has a legacy left to him." As Justice Gilbert of the Supreme Court of Georgia wrote in Yopp: "[T]he word legatee generally refers to a beneficiary of personal property under a will.... "[I]n ordinary usage the terms legatee and devisee are frequently used as synonymous or interchangeable." REFERENCES: Edwards v Smith, 25 Gr. 159 (1855 - NOTE 1) Wharton, John Jane Smith, Law Lexicon, or Dictionary of Jurisprudence: Explaining the Technical Words and Phrases Employed in the Several Departments of English Law, including also the Various Legal Terms Used in Commercial Transactions; Together with an Explanatory as well as Literal Translation of the Latin Maxims Contained in the Writings of the Ancient and Modern Commentators (London: Stevens & Sons, 1872), page 543. Yopp v Atlantic Coast Line R. Co. 97 S.E. 534 (1918) Categories & Topics: Duhaime's Trusts, Wills, Estates and Probate Law Dictionary Always looking up definitions? Save time with our search provider (modern browsers only) If you find an error or omission in Duhaime's Law Dictionary, or if you have suggestion for a legal term, we'd love to hear from you!