Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
in wills and estates
A mechanism by which a lifetime gift from a testator to a devisee reduces or eliminates a devise. The reduction occurs only when the will itself directs deduction of the gift, the testator declares in a contemporaneous writing that the gift satisfies the devise or requires deduction of its value, or the devisee acknowledges the same in writing.
Sources & Authorities
How it applies
Common Examples
6
Lifetime Transfer Satisfies Devise
The mayor of City of Dover wrote a will leaving a cash bequest to Ramona. Shortly before death the mayor transferred funds from a joint account into Ramona's personal account and left a note on city letterhead stating the transfer should count as Ramona's inheritance. Clara, the personal representative, treated the transfer as full satisfaction of the devise. Albert petitioned the court claiming the note failed the statutory writing requirements. The court held the note insufficient because it did not expressly declare satisfaction or deduction and Ramona provided no written acknowledgment, so the devise remained payable from the estate.
Claim Construction Determines Infringement
Westview Instruments sold a device that Markman alleged infringed its patent. The parties disputed the meaning of a key claim term. The district court construed the term as a matter of law and granted summary judgment of noninfringement. On appeal the Supreme Court held that claim construction is a question for the court, not the jury, because the judge is better positioned to interpret the written instrument and ensure uniform application of the patent.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Cases
Statutes
Uniform Acts
Restatements
Dictionaries
Markman v. Westview Instruments, Inc.517 U.S. 370 (1996)
No Fundamental Right to Assisted Suicide
Washington's statute criminalized assisting suicide. Glucksberg and other physicians challenged the law, arguing that competent, terminally ill adults possess a liberty interest in obtaining physician assistance to end their lives. The Supreme Court rejected the claim, holding that the asserted right was not deeply rooted in the nation's history and tradition and therefore was not a fundamental liberty protected by the Due Process Clause.
Washington v. Glucksberg521 U.S. 702 (1997)
Public University Funding of Student Speech
The University of Virginia denied funding to a student newspaper with a religious viewpoint while funding other student publications. Rosenberger sued, claiming a violation of the First Amendment. The Supreme Court held that the university's denial constituted viewpoint discrimination and that providing equal access to funding did not violate the Establishment Clause.
Rosenberger v. Rector and Visitors of the University of Virginia515 U.S. 819 (1995)
State Law Governs Marital Deduction Issue
The Commissioner challenged the estate's marital deduction on the ground that a prenuptial agreement did not create a qualifying interest under state law. The Supreme Court held that federal tax law follows state law determinations of property rights, so the Tax Court must apply the state supreme court's construction of the agreement.
Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. Estate of Bosch387 U.S. 456, 465 (1967)
Board Breached Duty of Care
Trans Union's board approved a cash-out merger after a single meeting and without obtaining a fairness opinion or shopping the company. Shareholders sued the directors for breach of fiduciary duty. The Delaware Supreme Court held that the directors' failure to inform themselves of the company's intrinsic value before approving the merger constituted a breach of the duty of care.
Smith v. Van GorkomDel. Supr., 488 A.2d 858, 872 (1985)
Common questions
Frequently Asked
3
What writings satisfy the requirement that a lifetime gift operate as satisfaction of a devise?+
Under Unif. Prob. Code § 2-609(a) three writings qualify: a clause in the will directing deduction, a contemporaneous writing by the testator declaring the gift satisfies the devise or requires deduction of its value, or a written acknowledgment by the devisee to the same effect. The will in the mayor-Ramona scenario contained no deduction clause and the note did not expressly declare satisfaction or deduction, so the statutory conditions were not met.
Supporting sources
Does a devisee need to sign anything for the gift to count as satisfaction?+
No. The statute is satisfied if the testator alone provides the contemporaneous written declaration. The devisee's written acknowledgment is an alternative, not a requirement when the testator's writing exists.
Supporting sources
How is the value of the lifetime gift determined for partial satisfaction purposes?+
Unif. Prob. Code § 2-609(b) values the property as of the earlier of the date the devisee took possession or the testator's death. That valuation controls the amount deducted from the devise.
Supporting sources
521 U.S. 702 (1997)Constitutional Law
…of our values as a people. It is a comparison of the relative strengths of opposing claims that informs the judicial task, not a deduction from some first premise. Thus informed, judicial review still has no warrant to substitute one reasonable resolution of the contending positions for another, but authority to supplant the…