ADVANCEMENT
A gift of money or property made by a person
while alive to his or her child or other legally recognized
heir, the value of which the person intends
to be deducted from the child’s or heir’s eventual
share in the estate after the giver’s death.
An advancement is not the same as a gift or
a loan because the person intends that the “advance” of the heir’s share of the estate be
applied against what the heir would normally
inherit. Although sometimes used to describe
situations involving both people who have died
intestate (without leaving a valid will) and people
who have left a will, the term advancement
should be used only when there is no valid will.
The laws of DESCENT AND DISTRIBUTION regulate
the distribution of an intestate’s property.
The term ADEMPTION applies to lifetime gifts
that reduce a beneficiary’s share under a will.
