-45-
* * * Only claims enforceable against the decedent's estate may
be deducted." Sec. 20.2053-4, Estate Tax Regs. Further, in
order to be deductible under section 2053(a)(3), claims against
the estate founded on a promise or agreement must be "contracted
bona fide and for an adequate and full consideration in money or
money's worth". Sec. 2053(c)(1)(A).
At the outset, we note that the fact that the estate paid
the JKH Trust $50,000 after the date of decedent's death is not
evidence that the earlier transfer created bona fide debt, nor is
the fact that the estate did not pay $100,000 evidence that the
additional $50,000 was not bona fide debt. Propstra v. United
States, 680 F.2d 1248, 1255 (9th Cir. 1982). "The law is clear
that post-death events are relevant when computing the deduction
to be taken for disputed or contingent claims." Id. at 1253.
The estate of decedent, however, did not contest or dispute the
claim. Thus, the post-death events, i.e., the repayment of one
$50,000 transfer and the non-repayment of the other, are not
relevant in computing the amount of the deduction to be taken for
the alleged debt.
Furthermore, "when claims are for sums certain and are
legally enforceable as of the date of death, post-death events
are not relevant in computing the permissible deduction." Id. at
1254. Thus, the threshold determination to be made under section
2053(a)(3) is whether the claim in question was certain and
enforceable at the time of the decedent's death. Id.
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