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Article: Estate and Gift Taxes
- Article from:
- West's Encyclopedia of American Law
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ESTATE AND GIFT TAXES
A combined federal tax on transfers by gift or death.
When property interests are given away during life or at death, taxes are imposed on the transfer. These taxes, known as estate and gift taxes, apply to the total transfers that an individual may make over a lifetime.
Estate and gift tax law is primarily statutory. Although the treasury department issues regulations governing the interpretation of the revenue laws, and although state and federal courts contribute their interpretations of statutory law, the foundation of the transfer taxes rests in chapters 11 and 12 of the internal revenue code. To understand the complex statutory framework requires a basic ...