Estate of H.A. True, Jr. - Page 327




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          liquidity in computing fair market value; however, we did not               
          attribute the lack of liquidity to the buy-sell agreements.  See            
          id.                                                                         
               In summary, the 1971 and 1973 gift tax cases determined fair           
          market value of the True Oil and Belle Fourche transferred                  
          interests at the dates of agreement by taking into account the              
          depressive effect the buy-sell agreements had on value.  The                
          District Court in those cases did not analyze whether the buy-              
          sell agreements served as substitutes for testamentary                      
          dispositions and therefore was allowed to consider their effect             
          on value.  This issue is not the same as the one in the cases               
          before us, as we are required to disregard the buy-sell                     
          agreements in determining value at the relevant dates in order to           
          make our determination of whether the True family buy-sell                  
          agreements were substitutes for testamentary devices.  Therefore,           
          we are not bound by the District Court’s determinations that tax            
          book value equaled fair market value for the True Oil and Belle             
          Fourche interests transferred as of the buy-sell agreement dates.           
          III.  Do True Family Buy-Sell Agreements Control Estate Tax                 
                Values?                                                               
               We now apply the Lauder II test to the True family buy-sell            
          agreements to determine whether the agreements control Federal              
          estate tax value.  Because most of the buy-sell agreements at               
          issue in these cases were modeled on the True Oil partnership               
          agreement or the Belle Fourche stockholders’ restrictive                    





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