145 A. 512 | Pa. | 1929
Argued January 14, 1929. This is an appeal by the administratrix of the estate of a deceased soldier of the World War from a decree of the Orphans' Court of Chester County, upholding an assessment of a direct inheritance tax on unmatured installments of war risk insurance paid to the estate by the federal government. The insured soldier died October 4, 1918, intestate, unmarried and without issue, leaving a father who died March 12, 1926, and a mother, the designated beneficiary, who died June 13, 1927. The contract between the insured and the government was subject, by its own terms, to future acts of Congress amending it, and the fund here in question, on the facts of this case, became payable to the estate of the deceased soldier, for ultimate distribution "to such person or persons within the permitted class of beneficiaries as would, under the laws of [the soldier's] place of residence be entitled to [his] personal property in case of intestacy."
The question involved is whether, when such a fund is paid by the federal government to the estate of a deceased soldier, to be distributed in accordance with the intestate laws of the domicile of the decedent, the fund involved can be taxed by the State. In answering this question in the affirmative, the court below relied on our decision in Ogilvie's Est.,
As to the first of the above named cases, it is sufficient to say that no question of taxation was there involved; and as to the others, that we do not agree with the determination there reached. Our view agrees with the decision in Tax Commission of Ohio v. Rife,
In the case to which we have just referred, the facts were as follows: A soldier named Stewart had a war risk policy for $10,000, in which his mother was named as beneficiary; he was killed in action on October 28, 1918; the beneficiary was paid in monthly installments until February, 1920, when she died; the remainder of the principal due on the insurance was then paid to the administrator of the deceased soldier's estate, this fund constituting the decedent's entire estate; those entitled under the law of Ohio to the estate of the deceased soldier were his uncles and aunts. An Ohio state tax, assessed upon the right of succession, was set aside by the court of appeals (
We shall quote another excerpt from Tax Commission of Ohio v. Rife, as amply covering a point of argument made in the instant case, that, since United States bonds held by a decedent's estate are subject to state inheritance tax, the same reasoning should make a war risk insurance fund, such as the one now before us, equally subject to inheritance tax. In disposing of this point, the Supreme Court of Ohio said: "Much stress is placed __________ upon the case of Plummer, Exr., v. Coler, Compt.,
We may also refer to the Geier Case, decided by the Supreme Court of Louisiana,
The two cases above quoted from so amply cover all the points in the case before us, it would serve no useful purpose to further elaborate our reasons for the order we are about to make.
The decree appealed from is reversed; costs to be paid out of the fund.