Duker v. Commissioner

18 T.C. 887, 1952 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 121
CourtUnited States Tax Court
DecidedAugust 20, 1952
DocketDocket No. 32361
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 18 T.C. 887 (Duker v. Commissioner) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Tax Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Duker v. Commissioner, 18 T.C. 887, 1952 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 121 (tax 1952).

Opinion

OPINION.

Tietjens, Judge:

This proceeding involves a deficiency of $3,114.86 in the estate tax liability of the above named estate and, also, a claimed overpayment of $5,470.63 in estate taxes.

The question presented is whether respondent erred in determining the amount of $47,873.33 as the value of the charitable residue under decedent’s will, allowable as a deduction for estate tax purposes.

It is stipulated that in determining the residue of the testator’s estate and the charitable deduction, respondent computed Maryland State inheritance taxes in the amount of $2,556.34, which have since been ascertained and paid in the amount of $2,099.96 and that proper credit will be given accordingly.

This proceeding was submitted under Eule 30 of the Court’s Eules of Practice and upon a stipulation of facts embracing exhibits attached thereto. The stipulated facts are found accordingly and included herein by reference.

The decedent, Helen Stow Duller, died testate on January 4, 1948, a citizen of the United States and a resident of Baltimore, Maryland. The petitioners John Carroll Stow, Charles E. Cockey and the Safé Deposit & Trust Company of Baltimore are the duly qualified and acting executors of decedent’s will and the latter is the trustee under the will and custodian of the assets of the estate. The executors filed a Federal estate tax return upon which they claimed a charitable deduction of $61,277.74 and the estate taxes shown to be due on that return have been paid.

Under the terms of her will, inter alia, the decedent devised and bequeathed to her brother John the right to occupy her home during his natural life free of all expenses, taxes, insurance, liens, etc., said expenses to be paid by her executors and trustee and charged to the income from the residue of her estate. Further, the decedent devised and bequeathed the residue of her estate in trust to pay, from the date of her death, the entire net income therefrom to her brother John during his natural life in monthly installments, such payments to be not less than $10,000 in any calendar year and in the event the net income be insufficient to invade the corpus of the trust estate to make up the difference, and, upon the death of her brother John to distribute the remainder of the trust corpus to certain designated charities. The decedent’s brother John was 71 years of age at the date of her death.

On the Federal estate tax return the executors reported a gross estate of $172,949.06 and after allowances for administration expenses, legacies, inheritance taxes', Federal estate taxes, etc., a residue of $129,988.28. The executors computed the value of John’s life income interest at $10,000 x the age 71 factor 6.02612 or $60,261.20 and they estimated the expenses for John’s lifetime occupancy of decedent’s home at $1,402.12 per annum x the age 71 factor 6.02612 or $8,449.34, making a total present value for John’s life interest at $68,710.54 which they subtracted from the above residue of $129,988.28, leaving a remainder of $61,277.74 claimed as an allowable charitable deduction.

The executors estimated that the annual income from the residue left in trust would amount to less than half of the annual charge of $11,402.12 payable to or for the benefit of the life tenant, so that an annual invasion of the trust corpus would be required so long as the life tenant lived.

The respondent determined the residue of decedent’s estate to be $126,135.64 which is subject to adjustment pursuant to the stipulation herein. The respondent determined the amount of $47,873.33 as the present worth or value, at date of the decedent’s death, of the remainder bequeathed to charity and allowed such amount as a deduction in determining the deficiency involved herein. The respondent computed that value in the following manner:

Residue_$126,135.64
Sum required to produce $10,000 annually payable monthly to life tenant and $1,402.12 annually capitalized at 4% equals_$289, 603. 00
Residue available_ 126,135. 64
Shortage_$163,467.36
Remainder of a fund of $289,603 required as above for a life tenant age 71 years. Table A column 3 using factor .72976 equals_$211,340. 69
Less shortage_ 163, 467.36
Charitable residue_ $47,873.33

As-used by respondent in the above computation, the factor .72976 represents the present worth of a reversion or remainder interest of $1 due at the end of the year of death of a person, the life tenant, 71 years of age as set out in column 3 of Table A (at page 30) Regulations 105 and appearing in section 81.10, “Valuation of property,” which is referred to in section 81.44, “Transfers for public, charitable, religious, etc., uses.”

The parties have stipulated that, “The factor of .72976 as used by respondent for a person 71 years of age is not questioned, but, the method of its application by respondent gives rise to the sole question in this case.”

The petitioners question the respondent’s method as being wholly theoretical, but more particularly urge that the “shortage” should be allocated by applying thereto the remainder factor .72976 as the portion thereof attributable to the charitable bequest (leaving a factor of .27024 attributable to the life estate) thereby producing a deductible charitable residue of $92,048.75. Petitioners then point out that such amount is identical with the amount which would be produced by directly applying tbe remainder factor .'72976 to the respondent’s figure of $126,135.64 residue of the estate. This latter circumstance points up the fallacy of petitioners’ contention for the reasons that (1) in the instant case the trust corpus will be invaded each year the life tenant lives thereby reducing the charitable residue and (2) the direct application of the remainder factor .72976 to the estate residue of $126,135.64 would be proper to determine the present worth thereof only in the event such amount had been bequeathed to charity with postponement while the life tenant received merely the net income therefrom, without right of invasion of the corpus. The petitioners’ contention for a finding of a deductible charitable bequest of $92,048.75 and, based thereon, of an overpayment of estate taxes must be denied.

Petitioners further contend' that a charitable bequest of $61,277.74 as reported on the estate tax return should be sustained as having been computed with the use of “true” figures. Based on the figures reported on the return they argue that the residue of decedent’s estate in the amount of $129,988.28 less $68,710.54 the value of the life estate (as representing the “true fund” consisting of both income and corpus which would be exhausted at the end of the life expectancy) leaves a charitable remainder of $61,277.74. That contention is not supported by the cases relied upon, namely, Ithaca Trust Co. v United States, 279 U. S. 151, and Commissioner v. Bank of America Nat. Trust & Savings Ass’n, 133 F. 2d 753. The quotations from those cases appearing in petitioners’ brief are not applicable here.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Estate of Gooel v. Commissioner
68 T.C. 504 (U.S. Tax Court, 1977)
Estate of Bachman v. Commissioner
1975 T.C. Memo. 186 (U.S. Tax Court, 1975)
In Re Estate of Judge
371 F. Supp. 716 (M.D. Pennsylvania, 1974)
Judge v. United States
371 F. Supp. 716 (M.D. Pennsylvania, 1974)
Estate of Schildkraut v. Commissioner
1965 T.C. Memo. 239 (U.S. Tax Court, 1965)
Moffett v. Commissioner
31 T.C. 541 (U.S. Tax Court, 1958)
Alexander v. Commissioner
25 T.C. 600 (U.S. Tax Court, 1955)
Duker v. Commissioner
18 T.C. 887 (U.S. Tax Court, 1952)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
18 T.C. 887, 1952 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 121, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/duker-v-commissioner-tax-1952.