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annuity agreement was allegedly signed by both decedent and her
grandchildren, rather than on the agreement's stated entry date
of August 29, 1989.
Respondent, on the other hand, contends that the private
annuity is to be valued under section 7520, because the
transaction occurred on August 29, 1989. Respondent points out
that the grandchildren's signatures to the annuity agreement are
stated to have been notarized before Mr. Shadle (a notary and
decedent's attorney) on August 29, 1989. According to
respondent, the testimony petitioner offered concerning the
grandchildren's alleged late 1988 execution of the annuity
agreement is not credible and should not be accepted by the Court
in light of the convincing other evidence of record. We
essentially agree with respondent.
The record reflects that although decedent signed the
annuity agreement in late 1988, she retained title to and was the
owner of the land until August 29, 1989. Indeed, during his
testimony, Mr. Shadle acknowledged that he had drafted the
annuity agreement and had written in by hand the August 29, 1989,
entry date specified in the contract document. Certainly by late
1988, decedent had already decided to sell her land to her
grandchildren pursuant to the planned private annuity
transaction, and she and her advisers were engaged in preparing
to make the sale. However, even if we were to accept (which we
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