Читать книгу Form 1041 - Stephen Brooks - Страница 39

A decedent's estate comes into existence at the time of an individual's death. For purposes of administration, a decedent's estate only consists of the decedent's probate assets. Probate assets can be generally defined as the property that the client owns solely in his or her own name alone. Assets that are disposed of through the designation of a beneficiary, such as IRAs, 401(k)s, qualified retirement plans, annuities, and life insurance do not fall within the definition of probate property. These assets are termed nonprobate property.

Probate property also does not include property that the client owns jointly with the right of survivorship with another party. Joint property does not pass according to the terms of a will, but will pass to the surviving joint owner automatically upon death by operation of law. In most cases, joint property will be designated as such with the names of the owners and the phrase following their names “Joint Tenants with Right of Survivorship” (JTWROS).⁵⁷