Estate of Opal v. Commissioner

450 F.2d 1085 (1971)

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Estate of Opal v. Commissioner

United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
450 F.2d 1085 (1971)

  • Written by Daniel Clark, JD

Facts

Edward Opal and his wife, Mae Opal, executed a joint will. The will provided that, upon the death of one spouse, the decedent’s entire estate would pass to the surviving spouse. Also pursuant to the will, when the second spouse died, the entire estate would pass to the couple’s son, Warren. The joint will constituted a binding contract under state law. Thus, after either Edward or Mae died, the surviving spouse would be powerless to alter the will to exclude Warren. Edward died, and, pursuant to the joint will, his entire estate passed to Mae. Edward’s estate (plaintiff) claimed the full marital deduction. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) (defendant) disallowed the deduction, and the tax court upheld the IRS’s determination. Edward’s estate appealed.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Friendly, C.J.)

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Casebooks

Estate, Trust, and Gift Taxation

Key Terms

  • Life EstateAn interest in real property that is held only for the life of the holder, in which the holder possesses no future interest beyond her lifetime. Although a life estate is transferrable, the interest remains limited to the lifetime of the original holder of the life estate, and the future interest passes to the remainderman at the life estate holder’s death.
  • Estate TaxA tax imposed when an estate’s net assets exceed an exclusion limit and the assets are to be distributed to beneficiaries other than a spouse. Estate tax is subject to an unlimited marital deduction that allows all of the estate to pass to a spouse free of estate tax.
  • ContractAn agreement between parties that establishes enforceable obligations between them.
  • RemainderA future interest in real property that becomes a present interest when the holder of a life estate dies.
  • Power of AppointmentThe right to choose who receives the future interest in a trust or property devised by will. A power of appointment may be general (i.e., no restrictions on the potential appointees) or special (i.e., a limited class of potential appointees) and may be exercisable during the holder’s lifetime or only as a testamentary power.

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