Wachovia Bank & Trust Co. v. Maxwell

Is the tax assessed against the proceeds of the life insurance policies procured by Mrs. Harris upon the life of her husband an inheritance or succession tax or is it an excise tax imposed upon the proceeds of life insurance independent of the Inheritance Tax Law? Is it a valid tax either as a succession tax or as an independent excise tax? These are the questions presented on this appeal.

The plaintiffs take the position that the tax was assessed and collected as an inheritance or a succession tax under Article I, eh. 127, Public *531Laws 1931, and tbat as snob it is invalid and uncollectible. In…