67-8-504 - Arbitration. - Tennessee Statutes

67-8-504. Arbitration.

If in any such case it appears that an agreement cannot be reached as provided in § 67-8-503, or if one (1) year shall have elapsed from the date of the election without such an agreement having been reached, the domicile of the decedent at the time of death shall be determined solely for inheritance tax purposes as follows:

     (1)  Where only this state and one (1) other state are involved, the commissioner and the taxing official of such other state shall each appoint a member of a board of arbitration, and the members so appointed shall select the third member of the board. If this state and more than one (1) other state are involved, the taxing officials thereof shall agree upon the authorities charged with the duty of administrating inheritance tax laws in three (3) states not involved, each of which authorities shall appoint a member of the board. The members of the board shall elect one (1) of their number as chair;

     (2)  Such board shall hold hearings at such places as are deemed necessary, upon reasonable notice to the executors, ancillary administrators, all other interested persons, and the taxing officials of the states involved, all of whom shall be entitled to be heard;

     (3)  Such board shall have power to administer oaths, take testimony, subpoena and require the attendance of witnesses and the production of books, papers and documents and issue commissions to take testimony. Subpoenas may be issued by any members of the board. Failure to obey a subpoena may be punished by a judge of any court of record in the same manner as if the subpoena had been issued by such judge or by the court in which such judge functions;

     (4)  Such board shall apply, whenever practicable, the rules of evidence which prevail in federal courts under the federal rules of civil procedure at the time of the hearing;

     (5)  Such board shall, by majority vote, determine the domicile of the decedent at the time of death. Such determination shall be final and conclusive, and shall bind this state and all of its judicial and administrative officials on all questions concerning the domicile of the decedent for inheritance tax purposes;

     (6)  The reasonable compensation and expenses of the members of the board and employees thereof shall be agreed upon among such members, the taxing officials involved, and the executors. In the event an agreement cannot be reached, such compensation and expenses shall be determined by such taxing officials, and if they cannot agree, by the appropriate probate court of the state determined to be the domicile. Such amount shall be borne by the estate and shall be deemed an administration expense; and

     (7)  The determinaton of such board and the record of its proceedings shall be filed with the authority having jurisdiction to assess the inheritance tax in the state determined to be the domicile of the decedent, and with the authorities that would have had jurisdiction to assess the inheritance tax in each of the other states involved, if the decedent had been found to be domiciled in the state.

[Acts 1951, ch. 183, § 4 (Williams, § 1295.4); T.C.A. (orig. ed.), § 30-1641.]