(; also spelled ''ex-gratia'') is

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

for "by favour", and is most often used in a

legal Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

context. When something has been done ''ex gratia'', it has been done voluntarily, out of kindness or grace. In

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

, an ''ex gratia payment'' is a payment made without the giver recognising any liability or legal obligation.

Examples

Compensation payments are often made ex gratia if a

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

or organization is prepared to compensate victims of an event such as an

accident An accident is an unintended, normally unwanted event that was not directly caused by humans. The term ''accident'' implies that nobody should be blamed, but the event may have been caused by unrecognized or unaddressed risks. Most researcher ...

or similar but not to admit liability to pay compensation or for causing the event. * A company conducting

layoff A layoff or downsizing is the temporary suspension or permanent termination of employment of an employee or, more commonly, a group of employees (collective layoff) for business reasons, such as personnel management or downsizing (reducing the ...

s may make an ex gratia payment to the affected employees that is greater than the statutory payment required by the law, perhaps if those employees had a long and well-performing service with the company. * An insurance company may make an ex gratia payment to customers if a claim does not meet the terms and conditions but the company chooses to make a voluntary payment out of kindness or compassion, without recognizing any obligation to make such a payment. * When the USS ''Vincennes'' fired upon

Iran Air Flight 655 Iran Air Flight 655 was a scheduled passenger flight from Tehran to Dubai via Bandar Abbas that was shot down on 3July 1988 by two SM-2MR surface-to-air missiles fired by the , a Cruiser#US cruiser development, guided-missile cruiser of the Unit ...

in 1988, killing some 290 people, the

US President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...

decided that the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

would offer compensation, on an ex gratia basis, to the families of the victims. * In a more routine context,

Suffolk County Council Suffolk County Council is the administrative authority for the county of Suffolk, England. It is run by 75 elected county councillors representing 63 divisions. It is a member of the East of England Local Government Association. History Establ ...

's document "Ex-Gratia Payments for Loss of or Damage to Personal Property" shows how an education authority compensates victims for damage but without accepting a liability to do so. * Following the 1994 Black Hawk shootdown incident, on 26 August 1994, the

US Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD or DOD) is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government directly related to national secu ...

announced that it would pay $100,000 in compensation to the families of each of the non-US personnel killed in the friendly-fire incident. *

Maharashtra Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...

Chief Minister

Vilasrao Deshmukh Vilasrao Dagadojirao Deshmukh (26 May 1945 – 14 August 2012) was an Indian politician who served as the 14th Chief Minister of Maharashtra, first term from 18 October 1999 to 16 January 2003 and second term, from 1 November 2004 to 5 D ...

announced ex-gratia payments of 100,000 rupees (about US$2,000) to the next of kin of those who died in the 11 July 2006 Mumbai train bombings. Those injured would be given ₹50,000 (about US$1,000) each. * The prime minister of Malaysia, Datuk Seri Abdullah Haji Ahmad Badawi, announced in June 2008 undisclosed ex gratia payments to the judges who were affected during the 1988 Malaysian constitutional crisis. *

Malaysia Airlines Malaysia Airlines Berhad (MAB; ms, Penerbangan Malaysia Berhad), formerly known as Malaysian Airline System (MAS; ), and branded as Malaysia Airlines, is the flag carrier airline of Malaysia and a member of the Oneworld airline alliance. (The ...

offered an ex gratia condolence payment of US$50,000 to the families of each passenger aboard the missing (assumed crashed) flight

MH370 Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 (MH370/MAS370) was an international passenger flight operated by Malaysia Airlines that disappeared on 8 March 2014 while flying from Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia to its planned destination ...

, but those affected have considered the conditions unacceptable and have asked the airline to review them. * In 2016, the

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

government awarded

David Bain On 20 June 1994, Robin and Margaret Bain and three of their four childrenArawa, Laniet and Stephenwere shot to death in Dunedin, New Zealand. The only suspects were David Cullen Bain, the eldest son and only survivor, and Robin Bain, the father ...

an ex gratia payment of NZ$925,000. While Bain had been acquitted of murdering his family in a retrial held in 2009, the defence had failed to prove his innocence.

Examples

See also