@amor…Tux explanation is correct.
@Tux…when an owner still has control over assets without transferring it into a trust, the assets goes into his estate upon death. If you have a Will, that document states who inherits your estate. If you die without a Will, state law determine who will inherit your estate. In both cases, if you have enough assets, a probate court has to supervise the settling of the estate.
Unless you owe taxes before death, most estates are exempted from taxes to the amount of $5.43million. The rest exceeding this amount will be taxed at around 35 to 40%.
A trust is a legal agreement in which a person (called a Grantor- in this case, the owner of the policy) states that one or more people (called Trustees) hold the Grantor’s assets for certain people (called the beneficiaries) subject to certain duties and the terms of the agreement.
Big difference between estate and trust, don't mix them up. I'm not sure if I answered your question, but this should give you some clue.
REG -63│ 84!!
BEC- 59│70│ 71 │78!
AUD- 75!
FAR- 87!
Mass-CPA