Legal Terms Chapter 30 - Settling an Estate Flashcards
Bond
A promise by the personal representative and the sureties to pay the amount of the bond to the probate judge if the representative’s duties are not faithfully performed; the amount of a probate bond is usually twice the value of the personal property of the estate.
Decree
A decision of a court of equity.
Estate tax
A tax imposed upon the estate of a deceased person; in 2017, $5.49 million was exempt, and then 40% tax rate above that amount.
First and final account
An accounting, if it is the only one, presented to the court in a final settlement of a decedent’s estate.
Gift tax
A federal tax that is imposed (with exceptions) on gifts totaling more than $5.45 million during one’s lifetime, as of 2016. One may give away $14,000 per year, per person without incurring an annual gift tax obligations.
Gifts made in contemplation of death
For federal estate tax law purposes, gifts made within three years of the date of death and which are subject to the federal estate tax; also called gifts causa mortis.
Gross estate
All the property that the decedent owned at death, including individually and jointly owned property, life insurance, living trusts, and gifts made in contemplation of death.
Heir
A person who inherits property.
Heirs at law
People who would have inherited had a decedent died intestate.
Inheritance tax
A tax imposed on a person who inherits from a decedent’s estate.
Inventory
A detailed list of articles of property in an estate, made by the executor or administrator thereof.
Judgment
A decision of a court of law.
Letters of administration
A certificate of appointment as administrator of an estate in a intestate estate.
Letters testamentary
A certificate of appointment as executor of a will in a testate estate.
Marital deduction
The amount that passes from a decedent to a surviving spouse and is not taxable under the federal estate tax law.
Proponent
The person offering a will for probate.
Sponge tax
A tax that soaks up money for the state that the estate is being given credit for in any event.
Sureties
People who stand behind the personal representative in the event that he or she fails to do the job.
Tax credit
Prepaid income tax (such as that deducted from dividend payment) that can be offset against the total income tax payable by an entity.
