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As a result of this joint liability, decedent would have been
entitled under Indiana law to payments from her co-obligors, if
she had paid more than her share of the Land Bank loan. See Ind.
Code Ann. sec. 26-1-3.1-116(b) (Michie 1999).
The purpose of the deduction for unpaid mortgages (and
generally for claims against the estate) is to ensure that the
estate tax is imposed on the net amount of wealth a decedent can
transmit to his or her heirs. See Estate of Courtney v.
Commissioner, supra at 321. To achieve this purpose, where a
decedent was jointly and severally liable for a debt at the time
of death, the decedent's estate is not allowed to deduct the
entire debt; instead, the estate's section 2053 deduction is
adjusted to take account of the decedent's right of contribution
from his co-obligors. See Parrott v. Commissioner, 7 B.T.A. 134
(1927), affd. 30 F.2d 792 (9th Cir. 1929). This may be done
directly, by limiting the decedent's section 2053 deduction to
the amount of the joint and several debt, less the value of the
decedent's contribution rights. It may also be done indirectly,
by allowing the decedent a deduction for the full amount of the
debt, but by including the value of the decedent's contribution
rights in the value of the gross estate. See id. at 138.
In this case, the value of decedent's right to seek
contribution has not been included in decedent's gross estate.
Therefore, the amount of petitioner's section 2053 deduction must
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