Becker v. Nye

CHIPMAN, P. J.

Petition for

writ of mandate

to compel defendant to countersign receipt for inheritance tax.

The facts appearing by the petition are as follows: Charles H. Becker, plaintiff’s testate, died in April, 1906, naming plaintiff as executrix of his will; all his property was community property, and plaintiff was named as sole devisee; she was duly appointed, and is now, the acting executrix of said will; the final account of the executrix was filed on August 13, 1907, and was settled and allowed on September 10, 1907, and “the total amount of said estate which came into the hand of said executrix as per said final account is the sum of $63,402.74,” and on August 13, 1907, she filed a petition for distribution of the estate. This petition came on to be heard on October 7, 1907, and on that day the court made and entered its order reciting, among other things, that in her said petition for distribution the executrix “asked the court to fix the amount of inheritance tax due from those entitled to distribution of said estate,” and that the amount ■of said estate coming into the hands of the. executrix was as above stated. The court, at the hearing and by its order, made on October 7, 1907, fixed the amount of the tax, but refused to distribute the estate until the executrix had pre.sented her receipt for the tax duly countersigned by the controller. It further appeared from this order that the amount ■of $63,402.74 came into the hands of the executrix, as shown by her final account, and that before the settlement and ■allowance of said final account, the sum of $3,360 was allowed the widow for support and maintenance; that the item of real ■property in said account (describing the land) “valued in said account and the inventory and appraisement at the sum of $19,200, together with the improvements thereon, valued in said account and in said appraisement at the sum of $3,500, was set aside to her as a probate homestead and excluded from further administration; that among the items in said

[131]

account the item of $1,376.04 was for grain planted, raised and harvested on the real property of said estate after the death of decedent”; that the costs of administration, including attorney’s fees, also the debts of decedent paid by said executrix, including funeral expenses of deceased and expenses of last illness, amounted to the sum of $2,133.80. After reciting the foregoing facts, the court adjudged that the real property set aside as a homestead, with its improvements, amounting to $22,700; the family allowance of $3,360; the costs of administration, etc., $2,133.80; the grain planted and harvested, $1,376.04, and the exemption of $10,000 allowed by the inheritance tax law, making in all $39,569.84, should be and are exempt from the payment of inheritance tax, leaving the sum of $23,832.90 subject thereto, as follows: