A self-declared trust is a situation in which an individual who has both legal and equitable ownership declares that she now owns the legal title for the benefit of another individual.
The will execution ceremony is the procedure by which a testator makes known how he wants his property to be handled after his death through his will. The execution ceremony has formal requirements such as the signature, attestation and writing requirements. The will is valid only if these formalities a
The net probate estate is the entirety of a decedent's estate that goes through administration by the probate court. It excludes will substitutes.
A descendant is a person born in a direct biological line. For example, a person's children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren are their descendants.
An inter vivos transfer is a transfer of property made during a person's lifetime. It can be contrasted with a testamentary transfer, which is a transfer made in a will after death. A revocable trust is considered an inter vivos transfer even though the benefit of the trust is not enjoyed by the beneficiary until after the death of the donor beca
The federal gift tax is a tax levied by the federal government on a donor who transfers property to a donee without the donee giving consideration in return. The gifted property must be in an amount above the limit set by the federal government in order to be subject to the tax.
The Prudent Investor Rule says that a trustee must act prudently when investing the trust property. The Prudent Investor Rule has changed over time to reflect the Modern Portfolio Theory.
The No Further Inquiry Rule applies to cases of self-dealing by a trustee. It makes all self-dealing transactions entered into by the trustee per se voidable by the beneficiaries, requiring no proof that such transactions were unreasonable or harmful. The trustee must act for the sole benefit of the beneficiaries.
