Terms Used In North Carolina General Statutes > Chapter 29 > Article 1 - General Provisions

• Advancement: means an irrevocable inter vivos gift of property, made by an intestate donor to any person who would be the donor's heir or one of the donor's heirs upon the donor's death, and intended by the intestate donor to enable the donee to anticipate the donee's inheritance to the extent of the gift; except that no gift to a spouse shall be considered an advancement unless so designated by the intestate donor in a writing signed by the donor at the time of the gift. See North Carolina General Statutes 29-2
• Decedent: A deceased person.
• Donee: The recipient of a gift.
• Donor: The person who makes a gift.
• Dower: A widow
• Escheat: Reversion of real or personal property to the state when 1) a person dies without leaving a will and has no heirs, or 2) when the property (such as a bank account) has been inactive for a certain period of time. ^{Source: OCC}
• Estate: means all the property of a decedent, including but not limited to:

  a. See North Carolina General Statutes 29-2

• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• Heir: means any person entitled to take real or personal property upon intestacy under the provisions of this Chapter. See North Carolina General Statutes 29-2
• Inter vivos: Transfer of property from one living person to another living person.
• Intestate: Dying without leaving a will.
• Net estate: means the estate of a decedent, exclusive of family allowances, costs of administration, and all lawful claims against the estate. See North Carolina General Statutes 29-2
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• personal property: shall include moneys, goods, chattels, choses in action and evidences of debt, including all things capable of ownership, not descendable to heirs at law. See North Carolina General Statutes 12-3
• property: shall include all property, both real and personal. See North Carolina General Statutes 12-3
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• Share: when used to describe the share of a net estate or property which any person is entitled to take, includes both the fractional share of the personal property and the undivided fractional interest in the real property, which the person is entitled to take. See North Carolina General Statutes 29-2