Title Insurance & Trust Co. v. San Diego Hospital Ass'n

Thomas E. Sharp (testator), a man of wealth, died November 29, 1959, in his sixty-ninth year, in San Diego, his place of residence.

His typewritten will of 42 pages, dated October 12, 1955, with a typewritten codicil of 11 pages, dated April 24, 1958, was admitted to probate on December 18, 1959. Title Insurance and Trust Company (Title) was named and qualified as executor.

Administration proceedings were long and complicated. Some of the assets of not less than $18,000,000 sübject to disposition by will, were held by four banks in New York, five banks in three Australian cities, several banks in San Diego, and banks in Chicago, Canada and London. Ancillary probate proceedings were had with regard to real property interests in Nevada and Texas. The dissolution of five wholly owned corporations was necessary.

*569 The determination of death taxes involved the appraisal of the assets of and dealings with the trustees of 13 different inter vivos trusts, including one in Canada.

The California inheritance tax was fixed at $2,552,613.89. The federal estate tax liability was finally determined in September 1966 to be $10,-249,185.17. That was the result of an agreement…