Wills, Trusts and Estates – Part 2

Church Law and Tax 1990-05-01 Recent Developments Wills, Trusts, and Estates Richard R. Hammar, J.D.,

Church Law and Tax 1990-05-01 Recent Developments

Wills, Trusts, and Estates

An Oregon state court ruled that the personal representatives of an estate improperly distributed estate assets to a minister. A decedent’s will left a portion of his estate to the “Eastside Community Church” of a designated address in Portland, Oregon. However, since the church occupying the designated address was actually known as the “Eastside Free Methodist Church,” the personal representatives of the estate concluded that the will was “ambiguous” and they accordingly decided to divide the estate equally between the Eastside Free Methodist Church and the minister who served the church in the 1970’s when the church was known as “Eastside Community Church” (despite the fact that the will was signed three years after the previous minister had left the church). The church challenged this distribution in court. A trial court ruled that the will was not ambiguous, and that “Eastside Community Church” clearly referred to “Eastside Free Methodist Church.” It concluded that the personal representatives had improperly distributed the estate. A state appeals court agreed, noting that “the personal representatives’ understanding of the meaning of the will is preposterous. The designated beneficiary is a church at a specified location, which the decedent had attended, even if it was under a different name. There is no intelligible way to read the will as intending to benefit an individual who had ceased being the minister at that church three years before the will was executed.” Burris v. Eastside Free Methodist Church, 784 P.2d 109 (Or. App. 1989).

Related Topics:

This content is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional service. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought. "From a Declaration of Principles jointly adopted by a Committee of the American Bar Association and a Committee of Publishers and Associations." Due to the nature of the U.S. legal system, laws and regulations constantly change. The editors encourage readers to carefully search the site for all content related to the topic of interest and consult qualified local counsel to verify the status of specific statutes, laws, regulations, and precedential court holdings.

ajax-loader-largecaret-downcloseHamburger Menuicon_amazonApple PodcastsBio Iconicon_cards_grid_caretChild Abuse Reporting Laws by State IconChurchSalary Iconicon_facebookGoogle Podcastsicon_instagramLegal Library IconLegal Library Iconicon_linkedinLock IconMegaphone IconOnline Learning IconPodcast IconRecent Legal Developments IconRecommended Reading IconRSS IconSubmiticon_select-arrowSpotify IconAlaska State MapAlabama State MapArkansas State MapArizona State MapCalifornia State MapColorado State MapConnecticut State MapWashington DC State MapDelaware State MapFederal MapFlorida State MapGeorgia State MapHawaii State MapIowa State MapIdaho State MapIllinois State MapIndiana State MapKansas State MapKentucky State MapLouisiana State MapMassachusetts State MapMaryland State MapMaine State MapMichigan State MapMinnesota State MapMissouri State MapMississippi State MapMontana State MapMulti State MapNorth Carolina State MapNorth Dakota State MapNebraska State MapNew Hampshire State MapNew Jersey State MapNew Mexico IconNevada State MapNew York State MapOhio State MapOklahoma State MapOregon State MapPennsylvania State MapRhode Island State MapSouth Carolina State MapSouth Dakota State MapTennessee State MapTexas State MapUtah State MapVirginia State MapVermont State MapWashington State MapWisconsin State MapWest Virginia State MapWyoming State IconShopping Cart IconTax Calendar Iconicon_twitteryoutubepauseplay
caret-downclosefacebook-squarehamburgerinstagram-squarelinkedin-squarepauseplaytwitter-square