## Facts

- Donald Simpson died in 1997, leaving his entire estate to his son, Terry Simpson.
- Terry served as the personal representative of Donald’s estate.
- Terry petitioned the probate court for a determination that certain real and personal property was excluded from the estate and therefore not subject to creditor claims.
- The disputed items were several guns that Terry claimed Donald gave him as an inter vivos gift during Donald’s lifetime.
- Terry’s only proof of the alleged gift was his own testimony that, while he and Donald were on a fishing trip, Donald verbally agreed to give Terry the guns.
- The guns remained at Donald’s home, and Terry did not take possession of them before Donald died.
- Donald did not make arrangements to deliver the guns to Terry before death.
- Eleanor Simpson, Donald’s ex-wife and Terry’s mother, objected to Terry’s petition and asserted claims against the estate.
- The probate court ruled that the guns were excluded from the estate based on Terry’s gift claim.
- Eleanor appealed that ruling.

## Issues

1. Whether a decedent’s oral statement that he is giving guns to his son, without any actual or constructive delivery before death, establishes a valid inter vivos gift that excludes the guns from the probate estate.

## Decision

- The appellate court reversed the probate court’s exclusion of the guns from the estate.
- The court held that an inter vivos gift requires delivery in addition to donative intent, and the record showed no delivery (actual, constructive, or symbolic) before Donald’s death.
- Because the guns stayed at Donald’s home and Donald took no steps to transfer possession or control to Terry during life, the evidence was insufficient to prove a completed gift.
- The court remanded for further proceedings consistent with treating the guns as property of the estate.
- A dissenting judge would have affirmed, reasoning that the family relationship and common practice of passing down guns supported finding a valid gift.

## Legal Principles

- A valid inter vivos gift requires: (1) donative intent and (2) delivery of the gift to the donee.
- Donative intent alone does not complete a gift; there must be an act that places the property under the donee’s control through actual, constructive, or symbolic delivery.
- When the alleged donor keeps possession and control of the property and makes no arrangements to transfer it before death, the delivery element is not met.
- A donee’s uncorroborated testimony about an oral promise, without proof of delivery, is not enough to establish a completed inter vivos gift.

## Conclusion

The court held that Donald’s alleged oral promise to give Terry the guns did not amount to a completed inter vivos gift because there was no delivery before Donald’s death; therefore, the guns remained part of Donald’s probate estate and could not be excluded on the gift theory.


Simpson v. Simpson, 723 So. 2d 326 (1998)