472.010. Definitions. - Missouri Statutes

Definitions.

472.010. When used in this code, unless otherwise apparentfrom the context:

(1) "Administrator" includes any administrator de bonis non,administrator cum testamento annexo, administrator ad litem andadministrator during absence or minority;

(2) "Child" includes an adopted child and a child born outof wedlock, but does not include a grandchild or other moreremote descendants;

(3) "Claims" include liabilities of the decedent whichsurvive whether arising in contract, tort or otherwise, funeralexpenses, the expense of a tombstone, and costs and expenses ofadministration;

(4) "Clerk" means clerk of the probate division of thecircuit court;

(5) "Code" or "probate code" means chapters 472, 473, 474and 475, RSMo;

(6) "Court" or "probate court" means the probate division ofthe circuit court;

(7) "Devise", when used as a noun, means a testamentarydisposition of real or personal property or both; when used as averb it means to dispose of real or personal property or both bywill;

(8) "Devisee" includes legatee;

(9) "Distributee" denotes those persons who are entitled tothe real and personal property of a decedent under his will,under the statutes of intestate succession or who take assurviving spouse under section 474.160, RSMo, upon election totake against the will;

(10) "Domicile" means the place in which a person hasvoluntarily fixed his abode, not for a mere special or temporarypurpose, but with a present intention of remaining therepermanently or for an indefinite time;

(11) "Estate" means the real and personal property of thedecedent or ward, as from time to time changed in form by sale,reinvestment or otherwise, and augmented by any accretions andadditions thereto and substitutions therefor, and diminished byany decreases and distributions therefrom;

(12) "Exempt property" means that property of a decedent'sestate which is not subject to be applied to the payment ofclaims, charges, legacies or bequests as described in section474.250, RSMo;

(13) "Fiduciary" includes executor, administrator, guardian,conservator, and trustee;

(14) "Heirs" means those persons, including the survivingspouse, who are entitled under the statutes of intestatesuccession to the real and personal property of a decedent on hisdeath intestate;

(15) "Interested persons" mean heirs, devisees, spouses,creditors or any others having a property right or claim againstthe estate of a decedent being administered and includes childrenof a protectee who may have a property right or claim against oran interest in the estate of a protectee. This meaning may varyat different stages and different parts of a proceeding and mustbe determined according to the particular purpose and matterinvolved;

(16) "Issue" of a person, when used to refer to persons whotake by intestate succession, includes adopted children and alllawful lineal descendants, except those who are the linealdescendants of living lineal descendants of the intestate;

(17) "Lease" includes an oil and gas lease or other minerallease, but does not include month-to-month or year-to-yeartenancies under oral contracts;

(18) "Legacy" means a testamentary disposition of personalproperty;

(19) "Legatee" means a person entitled to personal propertyunder a will;

(20) "Letters" include letters testamentary, letters ofadministration and letters of guardianship;

(21) "Lien" includes all liens except general judgment,execution and attachment liens;

(22) "Lineal descendants" include adopted children and theirdescendants;

(23) "Mortgage" includes deed of trust, vendor's lien andchattel mortgage;

(24) "Person" includes natural persons and corporations;

(25) "Personal property" includes interests in goods, money,choses in action, evidences of debt, shares of corporate stock,and chattels real;

(26) "Personal representative" means executor oradministrator. It includes an administrator with the willannexed, an administrator de bonis non, an administrator pendingcontest, an administrator during minority or absence, and anyother type of administrator of the estate of a decedent whoseappointment is permitted. It does not include an executor de sontort;

(27) "Property" includes both real and personal property;

(28) "Real property" includes estates and interests in land,corporeal or incorporeal, legal or equitable, other than chattelsreal;

(29) "Registered mail" includes "certified mail" as definedand certified under regulations of the United States PostalService;

(30) "Will" includes codicil; it also includes atestamentary instrument which merely appoints an executor and atestamentary instrument which merely revokes or revives anotherwill.

(L. 1955 p. 385 § 2, A.L. 1957 p. 829, A.L. 1978 H.B. 1634, A.L. 1980 S.B. 637, A.L. 1983 S.B. 44 & 45, A.L. 1986 S.B. 787)

Effective 6-3-86

(1955) Will construed and words "descendants of a deceased child" of testator held to include an adopted child of testator's deceased son. Hayes v. St. Louis Union Trust Co. (Mo.), 280 S.W.2d 649.

(1958) Devise of undivided one-half interest in realty to testator's son for life and at his death to his children absolutely but if he should die without issue living then to other son for life and at his death to other son's "heirs at law" was construed according to statute of descent and distribution in effect when second life tenant died rather than statute in effect at execution of will and testator's death and thus widow of second life tenant took one-half of the undivided one-half interest against contention that testator indicated intent that land go to his descendants. Thomas v. Higginbotham (Mo.), 318 S.W.2d 234.

(1959) Evidence held to establish domicile in state of Louisiana by prior resident of this state who had died, for the purpose of determining where his estate should be dispersed. In re Toler's Estate (Mo.), 325 S.W.2d 755.

(1965) As used in subsection 2 of § 475.320, the word "debts" is the substantial equivalent of "claims", which is defined in this section, subdivision (4), as including liabilities of the decedent which survive whether arising in contract or in tort or otherwise, funeral expenses, the expense of a tombstone and costs, and expenses of administrator. State v. Hollenbeck (A.), 394 S.W.2d 82.

(1974) Provision in will that executor gave to pastor of a named church a sum for masses to be said entitled the pastor to receive as a gift personal property and he was a "legatee" and a necessary party to suit to set aside will. Kane v. Mercantile Trust Co. National Association (Mo.), 513 S.W.2d 362.