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What Does This Word Mean?

© Susan M. Weschler

The next time you are looking at a will, you'll most likely come across words that are unfamiliar. When it comes to estate planning, there are many words that can be confusing, leaving you wondering what they actually mean. Here then, is a brief list of some of the more commonly found words in a will as they apply to inheritances.

Per Stirpes-This is a Latin term describing an inheritance system. What it says is that the children take the shares which their parent would have taken had they survived the decedent. The children are said to take their shares of the inheritance by "representing" their parent.

Per Capita-This term means that the individual descendant takes a share that is equal in size to all of the shares of the other descendants. It does not matter if the descendant is a child, grandchild or great grandchild, because everyone shares equally.

Consanguinity-This refers to the ties by blood between two individuals. This relation can be either lineal or collateral.

Lineal consanguinity is the relation between two people, where one person is descended from the other. Examples would be father and son, mother and daughter. An ancestor would be one's parent, or grandparent. While one's descendant would be their child, or grandchild. These lineal connections can go upwards or downwards in degrees, and every generation has these types of connections.

The other type of tie is known as collateral consanguinity. This relation exists between people who come from the same ancestor, but not from each other. The relation is expressed as a degree for each person. First degree would be the relation between two brothers, who come from the same father. An aunt and a niece would be related in the second degree. The niece is two degrees away from the common ancestor, while her mother's relationship to her sister or brother would be the first degree. The further out the relations go, either ascending or descending, the higher the degrees.

Legacy-This is a gift of money or property that is left to someone by a will. It can also mean something that is handed down from one generation to the next. A Bequest, also means the same thing, and is used interchangeably with Legacy. A Legatee is the person (beneficiary), who is named in the will to receive the legacy.

Devise-A gift in a will that applies only to real estate, and a Devisee is someone who receives a devise.