Florida Statute 732.802
“Killer not entitled to receive property or other benefits by reason of victim’s death”
What it means
Section 732.802 is Florida's slayer statute. A surviving person who unlawfully and intentionally kills or participates in procuring the death of the decedent is not entitled to any benefits under the will or the Florida Probate Code, and the estate passes as if the killer had predeceased the decedent (subsection (1)).
A joint tenant who kills another joint tenant severs the decedent's interest, so the share passes as the decedent's property and the killer has no survivorship rights; this covers tenancies by the entirety and joint accounts (subsection (2)). A named beneficiary of a bond, life insurance policy, or other contractual arrangement who kills the insured or obligee takes no benefit (subsection (3)). Other acquisitions, including a life estate in homestead property, follow the same principles (subsection (4)).
A final judgment of conviction of murder in any degree is conclusive. Without one, the court may determine by the greater weight of the evidence whether the killing was unlawful and intentional (subsection (5)). Subsection (6) protects purchasers for value without notice and payors without written notice of a claim.
- Applies to a surviving person who unlawfully and intentionally kills, or participates in procuring the death of, the decedent (§ 732.802(1)).
- The killer takes no benefit under the will or the Probate Code; the estate passes as if the killer predeceased the decedent (§ 732.802(1)).
- A joint tenant who kills another joint tenant severs the interest, with no survivorship rights for the killer (§ 732.802(2)).
- A beneficiary of a bond, life insurance policy, or other contractual arrangement who kills the insured or obligee takes no benefit (§ 732.802(3)).
- A final judgment of conviction of murder in any degree is conclusive; otherwise the court decides by the greater weight of the evidence (§ 732.802(5)).
- A payor is not liable unless it received written notice of a claim before payment (§ 732.802(6)).
Text of the statute (2026)
(1) A surviving person who unlawfully and intentionally kills or participates in procuring the death of the decedent is not entitled to any benefits under the will or under the Florida Probate Code, and the estate of the decedent passes as if the killer had predeceased the decedent. Property appointed by the will of the decedent to or for the benefit of the killer passes as if the killer had predeceased the decedent.
(2) Any joint tenant who unlawfully and intentionally kills another joint tenant thereby effects a severance of the interest of the decedent so that the share of the decedent passes as the decedent’s property and the killer has no rights by survivorship. This provision applies to joint tenancies with right of survivorship and tenancies by the entirety in real and personal property; joint and multiple-party accounts in banks, savings and loan associations, credit unions, and other institutions; and any other form of co-ownership with survivorship incidents.
(3) A named beneficiary of a bond, life insurance policy, or other contractual arrangement who unlawfully and intentionally kills the principal obligee or the person upon whose life the policy is issued is not entitled to any benefit under the bond, policy, or other contractual arrangement; and it becomes payable as though the killer had predeceased the decedent.
(5) A final judgment of conviction of murder in any degree is conclusive for purposes of this section. In the absence of a conviction of murder in any degree, the court may determine by the greater weight of the evidence whether the killing was unlawful and intentional for purposes of this section.
(6) This section does not affect the rights of any person who, before rights under this section have been adjudicated, purchases from the killer for value and without notice property which the killer would have acquired except for this section, but the killer is liable for the amount of the proceeds or the value of the property. Any insurance company, bank, or other obligor making payment according to the terms of its policy or obligation is not liable by reason of this section unless prior to payment it has received at its home office or principal address written notice of a claim under this section.
Excerpts are the subsections the summary relies on. Read the full official text of § 732.802.
History. s. 1, ch. 74-106; s. 113, ch. 75-220; s. 1, ch. 82-71.
How it applies
Subsection (5) sets two routes to a finding. A final judgment of conviction of murder in any degree is conclusive. Without a conviction, the court decides by the greater weight of the evidence whether the killing was unlawful and intentional, so the section is not limited to cases with a conviction. The statute reaches beyond the will: joint property, accounts, and insurance or other contract proceeds are covered by subsections (2) and (3). Under subsection (6), an obligor that pays under its policy or obligation is not liable unless it received written notice of a claim before payment.
Where this shows up
Pages on this site where § 732.802 does real work:
- Florida will checklist: who may make a will, signing and witness rules under section 732.502, the self-proving affidavit, and decisions on beneficiaries, personal representative, guardian and homestead
- Florida intestate succession: who inherits when there is no will, the spouse's share, descendants, parents, siblings and other relatives, the homestead, who is not an heir and steps to settle the estate
- Florida spousal elective share: 30 percent of the elective estate, what the elective estate includes and leaves out, the filing deadline, waiver, the court process and a worked example
- Aaron Hernandez
- Abraham Shakespeare
- The Gucci family
- Lord Lucan
- Napoleon Bonaparte
- Simultaneous death
- The slayer rule
Questions people ask
Sources
- Fla. Stat. § 732.802 (2026) (Entire section: subsections (1)-(6).)
Last checked: October 17, 2026
Published by the Probate.Help editorial team.How these pages are written and checked.