spoliation

n.

1. The act of despoiling or plundering.
2. Seizure of neutral vessels at sea by a belligerent power in time of war.
3. Law. Intentional alteration or destruction of a document.

[Middle English spoliacioun, from Anglo-Norman, from Latin spoliātiō, spoliātiōn-, from spoliātus, past participle of spoliāre, to despoil. See spoil.]

spoliator spo'li·a'tor n.

(spo-lee-AY-shun)

noun
1. The act of pillaging and plundering.
2. Seizure of neutral ships at sea in time of war.
3. The deliberate destruction or alteration of a document.

Etymology
From Middle English, from Latin spoliation- (stem of spoliatio), from spoliatus, past participle of spoliare (to spoil)

It's one of the most misspelled words around (as spoilation), one out of every ten occurrences, according to Google. It's right there with "definitely" which is misspelled (as definately) at about the same frequency.

Usage
"For raids to have an effect, as the Allies quickly learned, they had to be directed not against specific industrial installations but against entire urban centers. The Allied attack on Hamburg in late July 1943 was typical of the kind of spoliation that could be achieved. Half the city's domiciles were destroyed, as were 60% of its water system, 75% of its electricity generation and 90% of its gas works. Forty thousand Germans perished." — Gabriel Schoenfeld; The Strategy Behind All That Destruction; The Wall Street Journal (New York); May 8, 2000.

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This entry contains information applicable to United States law only.

Any erasure, interlineation, or other alteration made to commercial paper, such as a check or promissory note, by an individual who is not acting pursuant to the consent of the parties who have an interest in such instrument.

A spoliator of evidence in a legal action is an individual who neglects to produce evidence that is in her possession or control. In such a situation, any inferences that might be drawn against the party are permitted, and the withholding of the evidence is attributed to the person's presumed knowledge that it would have served to operate against her.

IN BRIEF: Robbery. Also: The act of damaging.

Shredding of important legal documents is a kind of spoliation that can have an effect on court cases.

Dansk (Danish)
n. - plyndring

Nederlands (Dutch)
plundering

Français (French)
n. - spoliation

Deutsch (German)
n. - Plünderung

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - λεηλασία, πλιάτσικο, σκύλευση, (νομ.) καταστροφή ή φθορά εγγράφου

Italiano (Italian)
saccheggio

Português (Portuguese)
n. - espoliação (f)

Русский (Russian)
грабеж, мародерство, захват имущества, преднамеренное уничтожение или искажение документа

Español (Spanish)
n. - despojo, expoliación, alteración de un documento

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - plundring, olagligt tillgrepp av kyrkliga inkomster, avsiktligt förstörande av handlingar

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
强夺, 毁灭文件, 掠夺

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 強奪, 毀滅文件, 掠奪

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 강탈, (타인 성직록의) 횡령, (어음, 유서 따위의) 문서 변조

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 略奪, 横領, ぶちこわし

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) سلب و نهب‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮שוד, ביזה, השחתה‬

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