The rules of construction in this section shall control in those situations not subject to the control of section 15-11-702.
(1) Where the title to property or the devolution thereof depends upon priority of death and there is no clear and convincing evidence that the persons have died otherwise than simultaneously, the property of each person shall be disposed of as if he or she had survived, except as provided otherwise in this section.
(2) (a) If property is so disposed of that the right of a beneficiary to succeed to any interest therein is conditional upon his or her surviving another person, and both persons die, and there is no clear and convincing evidence that the two have died otherwise than simultaneously, the beneficiary shall be deemed not to have survived.
(b) If there is no clear and convincing evidence that two or more beneficiaries have died otherwise than simultaneously and property has been disposed of in such a way that at the time of their deaths each of such beneficiaries would have been entitled to the property if he or she had survived the others, the property shall be divided into as many equal portions as there were beneficiaries and these portions shall be distributed respectively to those who would have taken in the event that each of such beneficiaries had survived.
(3) Where there is no clear and convincing evidence that two joint tenants have died otherwise than simultaneously, the property so held shall be distributed one-half as if one had survived and one-half as if the other had survived. If there are more than two joint tenants and all of them have so died, the property thus distributed shall be in the proportion that one bears to the whole number of joint tenants. For the purposes of this section, the term joint tenants includes owners of property held under circumstances which entitled one or more to the whole of the property on the death of the other or others.
(4) Where a husband and wife have died leaving community property and there is no clear and convincing evidence that they have died otherwise than simultaneously, one-half of all the community property shall pass as if the husband had survived, and as if said one-half were his separate property, and the other one-half thereof shall pass as if the wife had survived, and as if said other one-half were her separate property.
(5) Where the insured and the beneficiary in a policy of life or accident insurance have died and there is no clear and convincing evidence that they have died otherwise than simultaneously, the proceeds of the policy shall be distributed as if the insured had survived the beneficiary; except that, if the policy is community property of the insured and his or her spouse, and there is no alternative beneficiary, or no alternative beneficiary except the estate or personal representative of the insured, the proceeds shall be distributed as community property.
(6) This section shall not apply in the case of wills, living trusts, deeds, or contracts of insurance or any other situation where provision is made for distribution of property different from the provisions of this section or where provision is made for a presumption as to survivorship which results in a distribution of property different from that here provided.
Source: L. 94: Entire part R&RE, p. 1022, � 3, effective July 1, 1995.
Editor's note: This section is similar to former � 15-11-613 as it existed prior to 1995.
15-11-713. Construction of wills and trusts containing formula marital clauses. (1) If a decedent dies leaving a will that was executed or a trust that was created before September 12, 1981, which will or trust contains a formula expressly providing that the decedent's spouse or a qualifying trust is to receive the maximum amount of property qualifying for the marital deduction allowable by federal law, such formula provision shall be construed as referring to the amount of property which, after utilization of the credits available to the decedent's estate, produces the least possible federal estate tax and is eligible for the marital deduction as allowed under the federal Internal Revenue Code, as amended by section 403 (a) of the federal Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981, P. L. No. 97-34, in effect at the time of the decedent's death; except that such construction shall not be made if its effect is to reduce the amount of property passing to the surviving spouse or a qualifying trust. Such construction shall only be made if the following requirements are met:
(a) The decedent died after December 31, 1988;
(b) The formula referred to in this subsection (1) was not amended to refer specifically to an unlimited marital deduction under federal law at any time after September 12, 1981, and before the death of the decedent;
(c) The will or trust contains a devise to, or is in trust for the benefit of, the decedent's spouse which qualifies for a marital deduction pursuant to section 2056 of the federal Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 26 U.S.C. sec. 2056, as amended;
(d) There is no finding by the court having jurisdiction over the decedent's estate that the decedent intended to refer to the maximum marital deduction of the internal revenue code in effect at the time that the will or trust was drafted; and
(e) All distributions in satisfaction of the surviving spouse's share of the estate or the qualifying trust for the surviving spouse have not been completed.
(2) For the purposes of this section:
(a) Amount includes a fractional, pecuniary, or residual amount.
(b) Optimum marital deduction formula means any formula in a will or trust that provides that the decedent's spouse or a qualifying trust is to receive the maximum amount of property that qualifies for the estate tax marital deduction allowable by federal law that produces the least possible or no federal estate tax. A formula subject to construction under subsection (1) of this section is, as construed by subsection (1) of this section, an optimum marital deduction formula.
(c) Qualifying trust means any trust for the benefit of the decedent's spouse which qualifies for the marital deduction allowed under section 2056 of the federal Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 26 U.S.C. sec. 2056, as amended.
(3) In the case of an optimum marital deduction formula that contains a general reference to federal estate tax credits or otherwise requires the state death tax credit to be taken into account without a specific reference to such tax credit, the decedent is presumed to have intended that such tax credit be taken into account to reduce the amount that the decedent's spouse or a qualifying trust is to receive, only to the extent that the overall estate tax burden on the decedent's estate is not thereby increased. However, if a preponderance of the evidence shows that the decedent intended to increase the overall estate tax burden on the estate, the state death tax credit shall be taken into account fully for the purposes of reducing the amount that the decedent's spouse or a qualifying trust is to receive. Any formula subject to construction under subsection (1) of this section is subject to the presumption set forth in this subsection (3).
(4) In the case of an optimum marital deduction formula that specifically requires the state death tax credit to be taken into account and does not contain any words limiting the extent to which such credit shall be taken into account, the decedent is presumed to have intended that such credit be taken into account fully for the purpose of reducing the amount that the decedent's spouse or a qualifying trust is to receive, notwithstanding any resulting increase in the overall estate tax burden on the estate.
(5) Subsections (3) and (4) of this section apply with respect to any decedent who dies after December 31, 1988, unless all distributions in satisfaction of the surviving spouse's share of the estate or the qualifying trust for the surviving spouse are completed by July 1, 1994.
Source: L. 94: Entire part R&RE, p. 1024, � 3, effective July 1, 1995. L. 95: IP(1) amended, p. 360, � 12, effective July 1.
Editor's note: This section is similar to former � 15-11-614 as it existed prior to 1995.