Post mortem is Latin for "after death." Some common uses of the term “post-mortem” in a legal sense include the following:
- Post-mortem tax planning involves creating a plan to reduce tax liability for the estate and its beneficiaries after the testator dies.
- A postmortem examination is an autopsy of a deceased person.
- Post-mortem publicity rights refer to the rules that govern the commercial use of an individual's name, likeness, or other recognizable aspects of one's persona after their death.
[Last updated in July of 2020 by the Wex Definitions Team]