Beverly Gardiner Nance v. Iowa Department of Revenue

MANSFIELD, Justice (dissenting).

I respectfully dissent. The terms "passing to" and "passes" in Iowa Code sections 450.9 and 450.10 (2009) are ambiguous. I would continue to follow the approach we took in In re Estate of Van Duzer , 369 N.W.2d 407 (Iowa 1985), and hold that property passes from the decedent to a beneficiary when it is transferred to that beneficiary pursuant to a good-faith settlement agreement resolving litigation over distribution of the decedent's assets. Therefore, I would affirm the decision of the court of appeals.

Federal estate tax law takes the same approach. See 26…