- 12 -
Petition, filed on October 6, 1995, alleges for the first time
that the trustees' transfer to the Water District of portions of
Basinger without consideration constitutes a charitable transfer
that is eligible for an estate tax deduction. As of the time of
trial, there had not been any final accounting by Mr. Lanier
before the Circuit Court of Highlands County, Florida, regarding
the probate administration of the estate, nor have Messrs. Lanier
and Pearce accounted for the administration of the Trust during
this period.
OPINION
1. Estate Tax Deduction for Charitable Transfer
In determining the value of the taxable estate under section
2051, section 2055(a) allows a deduction from the gross estate of
the value of all "bequests, legacies, devises, or transfers" of
property to, or for the use of, a wide range of charitable,
religious, and educational organizations. However, it does not
necessarily follow that the estate will automatically be entitled
to a deduction under section 2055 simply because property
originally included in the gross estate is transferred by the
estate fiduciaries to a qualifying organization during the period
of estate administration. See, e.g., Estate of Marine v.
Commissioner, 97 T.C. 368 (1991), affd. 990 F.2d 136 (4th Cir.
1993); Estate of Pickard v. Commissioner, 60 T.C. 618 (1973),
affd. without published opinion 503 F.2d 1404 (6th Cir. 1974). A
recurring problem is whether the decedent directed the transfer
Page: Previous 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 NextLast modified: May 25, 2011