Affidavit -  A voluntary oath in writing sworn to before a Notary Public.

Annual exclusion - The amount each year which can be given by a person as a gift to each
recipient, free of federal gift tax.

Asset - The property of a person; including real, personal, tangible and intangible.

Assign - To transfer to another. Attorney-in-fact. The agent who is given, by a power of attorney, the right and power to act in place
of the grantor.

Basis - An accounting term establishing the value of an asset for the purpose of determining gain or loss on the sale of the asset
and for depreciation.

Beneficiary - An individual receiving assets from a trust or a Will; also one who is the recipient of life insurance proceeds.

Bequest - A gift by a Will of personal property.

Bond - A guarantee from a bond insurance company to pay for damages specified on the bond contract.

Buy-Sell agreement - An arrangement whereby the surviving owners of a business agree to purchase the interest of a
deceased owner.

Chronological - List of events arranged in order of their occurrence.

Closely held business - A business whose shares are not traded on any recognized stock exchange.

Codicil - A legal document used in making a change in a Will.

Comatose - The state of being in a deep prolonged unconsciousness.

Community property - Property acquired by married persons during their marriage who reside in a community property state.
The eight community states are: Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas and Washington.

Competent - Fit, able and capable.

Consideration - A reward or inducement to a contract.

Contingent Beneficiary - Person who may benefit if primary beneficiary dies or loses rights as beneficiary.

Copyright - The exclusive right to reproduce, publish or sell a book or work of art.

Creditor - A person to whom a debt is owed.

Custodian - General term to describe anyone who has charge or custody of property, papers, etc.

Decedent - A deceased person.

Designate - To select, appoint, nominate or to name.

Devise - A gift of real property by a Will.

Disbursement - To payout.

Domicile - The legal term for the place (county or state) where an individual intends to have his permanent and legal residence.

Donee - An individual who receives a gift or bequest.

Donor - An individual who gives a gift or bequest.

Estoppel - When a person makes a written statement that he may not change to the contrary.

Exemption - Exclusion from taxation.

Fair Market Value - The price arrived at by a willing buyer and seller in an arms length transaction.

Federal estate tax - The tax charged by the federal government upon an individual's death.

Fee simple - Absolute ownership of property.

Fiduciary - An individual having the duty to act for another's benefit, such as trustees, guardians, personal repr_sentatives, etc.

Gifts - A voluntary transfer of property to another made gratuitously and without consideration.

Gift tax - A tax imposed on the transfer of property by a gift.

Grantor - The person who creates a trust.

Guardianship - A court supervision of the managing and taking care of property and/or person of an incompetent adult or minor
child.

Heir - The person who inherits real or personal property.

Homestead exemption - A partial exclusion from property tax allowed by a state for a single family residence.

Incompetent - Deficient in ability or fitness; legally not qualified

Individual Retirement Accounts (I.R.A.) - Tax deductible retirement funds.

Inheritance tax - A tax imposed upon the privilege of receiving property from a decedent.

Intangible personal property - Personal property having no physical existence, but denoted by a document, such as stock.

Intestate statutes - State laws determining how property is to pass at the death of a person who has an estate subject to
probate but no Will.

Intestate - An individual who dies without making a Will.

Inventory - A document listing and valuing all property in an estate.

Irrevocable - That which cannot be canceled or called back.

Irrevocable trust - A trust that cannot be revoked or amended.

Joint tenancy with survivorship - (Also referred to as Joint tenancy) property owned between two or more people where
upon one of the owner's death the surviving owners receive the decedent's share of the property.

Keogh Plans - A designation for retirement plans for self-employed persons. A certain amount of yearly contributions to the
plans are tax deductible in accordance with I.R.S. regulations.

Liability - An obligation to pay money; amounts owed.

Lien - A legal claim upon property to cover an unpaid debt made with the property as security.

Liquidity - The ability to change assets into cash.

Living trust - A trust created during a person's lifetime which is usually revocable.

Marital deduction - The decedent receives a deduction on his estate tax return and effectively is not taxed on property left to his
spouse in accordance with I.R.S. regulations.

Notice of Administration - A specific notice required by state law to be given in order to begin the probating of an estate.

Per capita - The method of dividing an estate in equal shares to relatives with an equal degree of relationship to the decedent.

Per stirpes - The method of dividing an estate where a deceased child's share of the estate is shared equally between his
children. Then if his child predeceases him then to his children's children and so on.

Personal property - All property, whether tangible or intangible, which is not real property (real estate).

Personal representative - The individual who handles a decedent's estate during probate administration.

Pour over will - A will which leaves property to a living trust.

Power of attorney - An instrument authorizing another to act as one's agent.

Present ownership interest - Property that is given currently rather than in the future.

Primary beneficiary - The first individual receiving assets from a trust or a Will.

Probate - The court procedure administering a decedent's estate until all assets are distributed.

Proprietorship - Business, usually unincorporated, owned and controlled by one person.

Real property - Land and the buildings on it.

Reimburse - To pay back, to refund.

Residue - Property remaining to be disposed after specific bequests in a will or trust.

Revocable - Capable of being canceled or called back.

Revocable trust - A trust in which the creator may change or revoke it at any time.

Revocation - A legal document which ends a trust.

Revoke - To call back or repeal; to cancel.

Shareholder - A person who owns shares of stock in a corporation or company.

Sole proprietorship interests - One individual owns the business in his name.

State death tax - The tax charged by the states upon an individual's death.

Statute - A written law passed by legislature.

Stepped-up basis - The heirs basis of property, received from the decedent, becomes the fair market value as of the date of the
decedent's death.

Successor trustee - An individual who manages the assets under a trust when the grantor is incapacitated and handles the
distribution of those assets when the grantor of the trust dies.

Survivorship - The living of one of two or more persons after the death of the other or others.

Tangible personal property - Personal property having a physical existence.

Tenancy by the entirety - Property held by a husband and wife which is similar to joint tenancy with survivorship.

Tenancy in common - A method to hold property between two or more people, without survivorship.

Term insurance - Insurance for death protection only and has no cash surrender value.

Testate - The term used when a person dies leaving a will.

Testator - The person who makes a will.

Testatrix - The feminine version for a person making a Will.

Title insurance - Insurance against loss or damage resulting in defects of title to a particular piece of real property.

Trust - Property, real or personal, held by an individual or institution for the benefit of another.