In re the Transfer Tax upon the Estate of Klauber

Headnote

Matter of Klauber (Estate), 171 App. Div. 908 , affirmed.

Appeal from an order of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court in the first judicial department, entered November 5, 1915, which affirmed an order of the New York County Surrogate’s Court modifying a prior order assessing a transfer tax upon the estate of David Klauber, deceased. The question involved is the valuation and taxation of the good will of the copartnership in which the deceased had an interest. On the 26th day of April, 1907, Klauber, Horn & Co. was dissolved by the retirement of Horn. It had a good will concededly valued at $300,000. On the following day the firm of Klauber Brothers & Company was organized. The decedent had substantially a half interest in both firms. The new

firm had only been organized six months when Klauber died. It had made no profits and the lower courts haver held that it had no good will. • The comptroller contends that the good will of the old firm necessarily passed to the new firm and that the interest of the deceased in that good will was a valuable interest the transfer of which should pay a tax under the statute.