in lieu of

From French au lieu de, from the classical Latin expression (in) locō, meaning “in place (of)”, consisting of the the ablative of locus (“place”), preceded or followed by a genitive, as in “parentis locō esse”, Cicero, Div. in Caecil., 19.61.

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in lieu of

1. instead of; in place of

   They gave him a cash award, in lieu of the promised prize package.

2. (proscribed) in light of

   In lieu of recent events, more caution is needed.

Using to mean “in light of” is etymologically incorrect (it is literally “in place of”), and thus considered an error.[1]