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Bequeathing firearms


vito

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My wife has no interest in owning any firearms, and also does not have a FOID card. If I should die she would want to get rid of my guns as quickly as she could, and hopefully will follow my wishes and give them to my youngest son, the only one of my five adult children who both would treasure those guns and already has a FOID card and could legally own them. Would my wife be obligated to go through any legal process to transfer those guns to my son or would just my death and the fact that he has a FOID card be enough?

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It would be a bona fide gift to a son. See (2) below.

 

 

(a-15) The provisions of subsection (a-10) of this Section do not apply to:

(1) transfers that occur at the place of business of a federally licensed firearm dealer, if the federally licensed firearm dealer conducts a background check on the prospective recipient of the firearm in accordance with Section 3.1 of this Act and follows all other applicable federal, State, and local laws as if he or she were the seller or transferor of the firearm, although the dealer is not required to accept the firearm into his or her inventory. The purchaser or transferee may be required by the federally licensed firearm dealer to pay a fee not to exceed $10 per firearm, which the dealer may retain as compensation for performing the functions required under this paragraph, plus the applicable fees authorized by Section 3.1;

 

(2) transfers as a bona fide gift to the transferor's husband, wife, son, daughter, stepson, stepdaughter, father, mother, stepfather, stepmother, brother, sister, nephew, niece, uncle, aunt, grandfather, grandmother, grandson, granddaughter, father-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law, or daughter-in-law;

 

http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/publicacts/98/098-0508.htm

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The will only comes into play if your wife predeceases you. If you die before she does, she gets everything automatically. Welcome to marriage. That's why, as Quiet Observer says, your wife would have to gift the guns to your son.

 

A possible alternative is a living revocable trust with only you as the trustee. I've heard that guns are prohibited from being put in a trust in Illinois, but I've never verified that. If it's not prohibited, you name your son as the trustor. When you die, the trustor receives the things held in trust. Before you die, you can take things out, like if you want to sell them, etc., because that's the "revocable" part. You can always put more in.

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The will only comes into play if your wife predeceases you. If you die before she does, she gets everything automatically. Welcome to marriage. That's why, as Quiet Observer says, your wife would have to gift the guns to your son.

 

A possible alternative is a living revocable trust with only you as the trustee. I've heard that guns are prohibited from being put in a trust in Illinois, but I've never verified that. If it's not prohibited, you name your son as the trustor. When you die, the trustor receives the things held in trust. Before you die, you can take things out, like if you want to sell them, etc., because that's the "revocable" part. You can always put more in.

Not true. She only gets automatically what is held in joint tenancy or tenancy by the entirety. The rest of the estate, if no will is involved goes half to the wife if one child and one third to the wife if two or more children with the balance split evenly among the children. A wife cannot be disinherited and is entitled to these minimum amounts. Children can be disinherited. You can leave everything to your wife if so desired.

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Good point. I already have a detailed will, but I should add this as an addendum.

 

if your will was drawn up by your lawyer, ask the lawyer for advice.

 

 

The FOID has been around for decades. There must have been hundreds (thousands?) of times in which firearms went to a surviving immediate family member.

The police do not go through death notices and go to the houses to see about the guns the deceased may have had.

 

If you develop a long term fatal illness, at some point you might tell your son to go to the house and pick up the guns.

I see no reason that you, or anyone, needs to personally hand them to him.

If you die suddenly he goes to your house and picks them up within a reasonable time.

Technically, the guns probably should not be in your house on your death, since no one there will have a FOID.

No one, even the police, are not going to be concerned about a minor point at that time.

 

If the transfer takes place via a will, that involves probate which takes time and money. Meanwhile the guns would be with your wife, adding more anxiety to her grief.

 

Run my ideas by your lawyer. I believe that they are simple and legal.

If there is a possibility that your wife or other children might object to the suggestions, you could bring that up with the lawyer too.

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I've heard that guns are prohibited from being put in a trust in Illinois

My understanding is I believe guns as property are able to be in a trust as in estate planning ( i.e. Will, Revocable trust, POA, etc). A non estate trust as in an owner of NFA items like an SBR here are not allowed and each individual has to be named for those but thats not what we are talking about. IANAL and could be wrong.
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