52: Wills, Trusts, and Estates

Question 1

testator / testatrix

Answer 1

a person who makes a will

Question 2

beneficiary

Answer 2

a person or party designated in a will to receive all or a portion of the testator’s property at the time of the testator’s death

Question 3

statute of wills

Answer 3

a state statute that establishes the requirements for making a valid will

Question 4

testamentary capacity

Answer 4

the requirement that a testator or testatrix be of legal age and “sound mind” when a will was executed

Question 5

writing requirement

Answer 5

a requirement that a will must be in writing to be valid

Question 6

attestation

Answer 6

the action of a will being witnessed by two or three objective and competent people

Question 7

attestation clause

Answer 7

a clause in a will that usually follows the signature of the testator or testatrix in which the witnesses sign certifying that they have witnessed the signing of the will by the testator or testatrix

Question 8

formal will

Answer 8

a document that contains a declaration of how a person wants his or her property to be distributed upon his or her death

Question 9

codicil

Answer 9

a separate document that must be executed to amend a will. it must be executed with the same formalities as a will

Question 10

revocation

Answer 10

a situation that occurs when a testator or testatrix intentionally tears, burns, obliterates, or otherwise destroys his or her will

Question 11

subsequent will

Answer 11

a will that is executed after a previous will that revokes the prior will

Question 12

joint will

Answer 12

a will that is executed by two or more testators

Question 13

mutual wills / reciprocal wills

Answer 13

a situation in which two or more testators execute separate wills that leave their property to each other on the condition that the survivor leave the remaining property on his or her death as agreed by the testators

Question 14

holographic will

Answer 14

a will that is entirely handwritten and signed by the testator

Question 15

nuncupative will / dying declaration / deathbed will

Answer 15

an oral will that is made before a witness during the testator’s last illness

Question 16

uniform simultaneous death act

Answer 16

an act that provides that if people who would inherit property from each other die simultaneously, each person’s property is distributed as though he or she had survived

Question 17

probate / settlement of the estate

Answer 17

the process of a deceased’s property being collected, debts and taxes being paid, and the remainder of the estate being distributed

Question 18

executor / executrix

Answer 18

a personal representative who is named in a testator’s or testatrix’s will who is appointed to administer the estate during the probate of a will

Question 19

administrator / administratrix

Answer 19

a person who is appointed by the probate court to administer the estate of a testator’s or testatrix’s will if no one is named in the will or if the decendent dies intestate without a will

Question 20

devise

Answer 20

a gift of real estate by will

Question 21

bequest / legacy

Answer 21

a gift of personal property by will

Question 22

specific gift

Answer 22

a gift of a specifically named piece of property in a will

Question 23

general gift

Answer 23

a gift in a will that does not identify the specific property from which the gift is to be made (e.g., a gift of a certain amount of money)

Question 24

residuary gift

Answer 24

a gift of an estate left after the debts, taxes, and specific and general gifts have been paid

Question 25

residuary clause

Answer 25

a clause in a will that leaves the remainder of an estate after specific and general gifts are made and debts, taxes, and other costs are paid, to a beneficiary

Question 26

renounce

Answer 26

the action by a person who has been left an inheritance that rejects an inheritance

Question 27

lineal descendants

Answer 27

children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and so on of a testator

Question 28

per stirpes distribution

Answer 28

a distribution of an estate in which grandchildren and great-grandchildren of the deceased inherit by representation of their parent

Question 29

per capita distribution

Answer 29

a distribution of an estate in which each grandchild and great-grandchild of the deceased inherits equally with the children of the deceased

Question 30

ademption

Answer 30

a rule that says if a testator leaves a specific devise of property to a beneficiary but the property is no longer in the estate when the testator dies, the beneficiary receives nothing

Question 31

abatement

Answer 31

a rule that says if the property a testator leaves is not sufficient to satisfy all the beneficiaries named in a will and there are both general and residuary bequests, the residuary bequest is abated first (i.e., paid last)

Question 32

intestate

Answer 32

the state of having died without leaving a will or trust. the persons who receive the property as determined by state intestacy statutes are called heirs

Question 33

intestacy statute

Answer 33

a state statute that specifies how a deceased's property will be distributed if he or she dies without a will or trust or if the last will is declared void and there is no prior valid will

Question 34

escheat

Answer 34

a rule of state law that provides that if the deceased dies intestate without a will or trust and there are no surviving relatives, then the deceased's property belongs to the state

Question 35

trust

Answer 35

a legal arrangement established when one person transfers title to property to another person to be held and used for the benefit of a third person

Question 36

trustor / settlor

Answer 36

a person who creates a trust

Question 37

trust corpus / trust res

Answer 37

property and assets held in trust

Question 38

express trust

Answer 38

a trust created voluntarily by the settlor

Question 39

trust instrument / trust agreement

Answer 39

a written agreement that creates a trust

Question 40

irrevocable trust

Answer 40

a trust that cannot be revoked by the trustor or settler who created the trust

Question 41

income beneficiary

Answer 41

a person or entity to be paid income from a trust

Question 42

remainder beneficiary

Answer 42

a person who possesses the right of remainder to real property upon the expiration of a limited or contingent estate (e.g., life estate); a person or entity who receives the trust corpus upon the termination of a trust

Question 43

inter vivos trust

Answer 43

a trust that is created while the settlor is alive

Question 44

testamentary trust

Answer 44

a trust created by will; the trust comes into existence when the settlor dies

Question 45

constructive trust

Answer 45

an equitable trust that is implied by law to avoid fraud, unjust enrichment, and injustice

Question 46

resulting trust

Answer 46

a trust that is implied from the conduct of the parties

Question 47

charitable trust

Answer 47

a trust that is created for the benefit of a segment of society or society in general

Question 48

spendthrift trust

Answer 48

a trust that is designed to prevent a beneficiary's personal creditors from reaching his or her trust interest. all control over the trust is removed from the beneficiary

Question 49

totten trust

Answer 49

a trust that is created when a person deposits money in a bank account in his or her own name and holds it as a trustee for the benefit of another person

Question 50

living trust / grantor's trust / revocable trust

Answer 50

a method for holding property during a person's lifetime and distributing the property upon that person's death

Question 51

grantor / trustor

Answer 51

the party who transfers an ownership interest in real property; a person who creates a living trust

Question 52

trustee

Answer 52

a party who holds legal title to the trust corpus and manages the trust for the benefit of the beneficiary or beneficiaries

Question 53

undue influence

Answer 53

a situation in which one person takes advantage of another person's mental, emotional, or physical weakness and unduly persuades that person to enter into a contract or make a will

Question 54

health care directive / health care proxy / advance directive

Answer 54

a document in which the maker names someone to be his or her health care agent to make all health care decisions in accordance with his or her wishes, as outlined in the living will

Question 55

health care agent

Answer 55

a person named in a health care directive to make all health care decisions in accordance with the wishes outlined in the maker's living will

Question 56

right to die

Answer 56

the right of a terminally ill person to make a decision to end his or her life by assisted suicide. assisted suicide takes place when a physician provides a terminally ill person with the means to end his or her own life. only a few states permit assisted suicide

Question 57

medical aid in dying / physician-assisted death

Answer 57

occurs when a patient who has been diagnosed with a fatal disease and has less than an estimated period to live (e.g., six months) is prescribed a lethal dose of medicine that the patient self-administers to end his or her own life