Hey! Where’s My Gift?

Ademption: Specific Gifts Not Owned At Time of Will Execution Do Not Adeem

Ademption is a probate concept wherein a determination is made as to the disposition of property gifted under a person’s will, but not in existence (or not in the person’s probate estate) when the person dies. For specific property, the general rule is that the property is adeemed, and the gift fails. For example, if a person gifts a piece of jewelry to a specific person, but the jewelry was not owned by the person at the time of her death, the gift would be adeemed and the person would receive no gift at all. However, a general gift, usually cash gifts, is never adeemed. If there is not enough money in the probate estate to satisfy the gift, then other assets in the residuary estate are liquidated or sold to raise the money necessary to satisfy the gift. Read the rest of this entry