Also, take a look at other financial publications and business articles from Montana State University Extension. When an individual dies, Montana laws provide for the distribution of his or her property to appropriate individuals. One factor that determines whether the property goes through probate is how it is titled.
Title also affects how property is distributed among the decedent's beneficiaries.
While property can pass according to the contractual agreement, the property is still subject to federal estate and state inheritance tax on the death of the owner. This MontGuide describes some of the common contractual forms of nonprobate transfers of property. Securities with TOD registrations do not go through probate. There are various contractual arrangements that Montana laws recognize as transfers taking effect at death if the specific arrangement provides for the passage of the property subject to the arrangement to a certain beneficiary. What an individual has written in a will regarding the distribution of assets covered in the contracts mentioned above does not apply, because the contract takes priority over the will.