Acceptance of gift

What does Acceptance of gift mean in American Law?

The definition of Acceptance of gift in the law of the United States, as defined by the lexicographer Arthur Leff in his legal dictionary is:

Some manifestation by the donee of a gift that he is content to receive it. As usual, this state of mind may be explicit or implicit, and expressed by words or deeds, notably by exercising dominion over the subject matter of the gift. In the case of a gift inter vivos, where actual delivery is ordinarily required to render the gift valid, manual acceptance by the donee will tend to supply the evidence of acceptance. But in other contexts no such obvious dramatization of acceptance is necessarily provided, e.g., with respect to a testamentary gift. Certainly, not all gifts should by presumed to be accepted by the donee, for some gifts carry responsibilites along

with them; others may, if accepted, divest the donee of a preferable legal entitlement (e.g., a testamentary gift to a widow which, if accepted, will prevent her from taking her statutory share of the estate); and still others, if accepted, may have unacceptable tax consequences. So it is not at all foolish to require that there be some evidence that the donee has indeed accepted this “free benefit,” for it may be for him neither free nor even, in the net, a benefit.