Oregon Revised Statutes

Or. Rev. Stat. § 111.005 (2026)

Definitions for probate law

✓ current as of May 2026
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      111.005 Definitions for probate law. As used in ORS chapters 111, 112, 113, 114, 115, 116 and 117, unless the context requires otherwise:

      (1) “Abate” means to reduce a devise on account of the insufficiency of the estate to pay all claims, expenses and devises in full.

      (2) “Action” includes suits and legal proceedings.

      (3) “Administration” means any proceeding relating to the estate of a decedent, whether the decedent died testate, intestate or partially intestate.

      (4) “Advancement” means a gift by a decedent to an heir or devisee with the intent that the gift satisfy in whole or in part the heir’s share of an intestate estate or the devisee’s share of a testate estate.

      (5) “Assets” includes real, personal and intangible property.

      (6) “Claim” includes liabilities of a decedent, whether arising in contract, in tort or otherwise.

      (7) “Court” or “probate court” means the court in which jurisdiction of probate matters, causes and proceedings is vested as provided in ORS 111.075.

      (8) “Decedent” means a person who has died.

      (9)(a) “Descendant” means a person who is descended from a specific ancestor and includes an adopted child and the adopted child’s descendants.

      (b) When used to refer to persons who take by intestate succession, “descendant” does not include a person who is the descendant of a living descendant.

      (10) “Devise,” when used as a noun, means property disposed of by a will.

      (11) “Devise,” when used as a verb, means to dispose of property by a will.

      (12) “Devisee” means a person designated in a will to receive a devise.

      (13) “Distributee” means a person entitled to any property of a decedent under the will of the decedent or under intestate succession.

      (14) “Domicile” means the place of abode of a person, where the person intends to remain and to which, if absent, the person intends to return.

      (15)(a) “Estate” means the real and personal property of a decedent, as from time to time changed in form by sale, reinvestment, substitutions or otherwise, augmented by any accretions or additions or diminished by any decreases or distributions.

      (b) “Estate” includes tangible and intangible personal property of a decedent domiciled in Oregon, wherever the property is situated.

      (16) “Funeral” includes the burial or other disposition of the remains of a decedent, any plot or tomb and other necessary incidents to the disposition of the remains, any memorial ceremony or other observance and related expenses.

      (17) “General devise” means a devise chargeable generally on the estate of a testator so that the devise is not distinguishable from other parts of the estate and does not constitute a specific devise.

      (18) “Heir” means any person who is or would be entitled under intestate succession to property of a person upon that person’s death.

      (19)(a) “Interested person” means any person having a property right in or claim against the estate of a decedent that may be affected by the proceeding.

      (b) “Interested person” includes a decedent’s heir, devisee, child, spouse or creditor if the heir, devisee, child, spouse or creditor has a property right in or claim against the decedent’s estate.

      (c) “Interested person” also includes:

      (A) A fiduciary representing a person described in paragraph (a) or (b) of this subsection; and

      (B) A person designated in writing by the decedent to control the use of the decedent’s gametes or embryos after the decedent’s death.

      (20) “Intestate” means one who dies without leaving a valid will, or the circumstance of dying without leaving a valid will, effectively disposing of all the estate.

      (21) “Intestate succession” means succession to property of a decedent who dies intestate or partially intestate.

      (22) “Issue” means a descendant or descendants.

      (23) “Net estate” means the real and personal property of a decedent, except property used for the support of the surviving spouse and children and for the payment of expenses of administration, funeral expenses, claims and taxes.

      (24) “Net intestate estate” means any part of the net estate of a decedent not effectively disposed of by the will.

      (25) “Personal property” includes all property other than real property.

      (26) “Personal representative” includes executor, administrator, administrator with will annexed and administrator de bonis non, but does not include special administrator.

      (27) “Property” includes both real and personal property.

      (28) “Real property” includes all legal and equitable interests in land, in fee and for life.

      (29) “Settlement” includes, as to the estate of a decedent, the full process of administration, distribution and closing.

      (30) “Specific devise” means a devise of a specific thing or specified part of the estate of a testator that is so described as to be capable of identification. A specific devise is a gift of a part of the estate identified and differentiated from all other parts.

      (31) “Will” includes codicil and also includes a testamentary instrument that merely appoints a personal representative or that merely revokes or revives another will. [1969 c.591 §1; 2015 c.387 §31; 2016 c.42 §1; 2017 c.169 §1; 2021 c.282 §4; 2025 c.592 §75]

 

      111.010 [Repealed by 1969 c.591 §305]

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 35 cases (4 in the last 5 years), 1971–2026 · leading case: Price v. Lotlikar, 397 P.3d 54 (Or. Ct. App. 2017).
Price v. Lotlikar, 397 P.3d 54 (Or. Ct. App. 2017). · cites it 18× “ORS 111.005 was amended various times after the probate court’s ruling in this case.”
Brown v. Hackney, 208 P.3d 988 (Or. Ct. App. 2009). · cites it 4× “Thus framed, the issue in this case is one of first impression: whether the legislature intended for the amount of a personal representative’s compensation to be based on the proceeds from the settlement of a wrongful death action brought by that personal representative.”
Waybrant v. Bernstein, 661 P.2d 931 (Or. 1983). · cites it 2× “” ORS 111.005(19). It further defines “claim” as including “liabilities of a decedent, whether arising in contract, in tort or otherwise.”
In Re the Marriage of Githens, 204 P.3d 835 (Or. Ct. App. 2009). · cites it 2× “, where the court noted that the distinction between real and personal property in the context of decedent's estates had been abolished by ORS 111.005(28). 312 Or. 307, 313 , 313 n.”
Deberry v. Summers, 296 P.3d 610 (Or. Ct. App. 2013). “ORS 111.005 also provides that the definitions contained in ORS chapter 111 apply to the entire probate code unless the context otherwise requires.”
Bedortha v. Sunridge Land Co., Inc., 822 P.2d 694 (Or. 1991). “” Or Laws 1969, ch 591, § 1 (codified at ORS 111.005(28)). 4 Following the decision in Security Bank v.”
State v. Patton, 238 P.3d 439 (Or. Ct. App. 2010). “Under Oregon law, an estate consists of “the real and personal property of a decedent,” ORS 111.005(15), and as a “decedent’s property subject to administration in Oregon.”
Rogers v. Rogers, 691 P.2d 114 (Or. Ct. App. 1984). “” If the requirements of execution have not been met at the time of the death of the testator, then the will is not valid and the purported testator has died intestate.”
Rennie v. Pozzi, 656 P.2d 934 (Or. 1982). “233 and ORS 111.005(19). The court granted the motion and ordered that the reopening order be “set aside and held for naught.”
Rennie v. Freeway Transp., 640 P.2d 704 (Or. Ct. App. 1982). · cites it 2× “233 1 and ORS 111.005(19). 2 There was no appeal from this ruling.”
West v. White, 758 P.2d 424 (Or. Ct. App. 1988). · cites it 2× “ORS 111.005(28) provides: “ ‘Real property’ includes all legal and equitable interests in land, in fee and for life.”
Sather v. Saif Corp., 347 P.3d 326 (Or. 2015). “See ORS 111.005(15) (so defining “estate” for purposes of the probate code); see also ORS 114.”
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 111.005(15) — 4 cases
State v. Patton, 238 P.3d 439 (Or. Ct. App. 2010). “Under Oregon law, an estate consists of “the real and personal property of a decedent,” ORS 111.005(15), and as a “decedent’s property subject to administration in Oregon.”
Brown v. Hackney, 208 P.3d 988 (Or. Ct. App. 2009). “Thus framed, the issue in this case is one of first impression: whether the legislature intended for the amount of a personal representative’s compensation to be based on the proceeds from the settlement of a wrongful death action brought by that personal representative.”
Sather v. Saif Corp., 347 P.3d 326 (Or. 2015). “See ORS 111.005(15) (so defining “estate” for purposes of the probate code); see also ORS 114.”
Sather v. SAIF (Or. 2015).
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 111.005(18) — 2 cases
Price v. Lotlikar, 397 P.3d 54 (Or. Ct. App. 2017). “ORS 111.005 was amended various times after the probate court’s ruling in this case.”
Bose v. Bose, 503 P.2d 1259 (Or. Ct. App. 1972).
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 111.005(19) — 7 cases
Price v. Lotlikar, 397 P.3d 54 (Or. Ct. App. 2017). “ORS 111.005 was amended various times after the probate court’s ruling in this case.”
Waybrant v. Bernstein, 661 P.2d 931 (Or. 1983). “” ORS 111.005(19). It further defines “claim” as including “liabilities of a decedent, whether arising in contract, in tort or otherwise.”
Rennie v. Pozzi, 656 P.2d 934 (Or. 1982). “233 and ORS 111.005(19). The court granted the motion and ordered that the reopening order be “set aside and held for naught.”
Rennie v. Freeway Transp., 640 P.2d 704 (Or. Ct. App. 1982). “233 1 and ORS 111.005(19). 2 There was no appeal from this ruling.”
Lawver v. Beesley, 740 P.2d 1215 (Or. Ct. App. 1987).
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 111.005(19)(a) — 2 cases
Hammond v. Rush, 345 Or. App. 660 (Or. Ct. App. 2025).
Hammond v. Rush, 345 Or. App. 660 (Or. Ct. App. 2025).
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 111.005(19)(b) — 2 cases
Hammond v. Rush, 345 Or. App. 660 (Or. Ct. App. 2025).
Hammond v. Rush, 345 Or. App. 660 (Or. Ct. App. 2025).
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 111.005(19)(c) — 2 cases
Hammond v. Rush, 345 Or. App. 660 (Or. Ct. App. 2025).
Hammond v. Rush, 345 Or. App. 660 (Or. Ct. App. 2025).
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 111.005(20) — 3 cases
Rogers v. Rogers, 691 P.2d 114 (Or. Ct. App. 1984). “” If the requirements of execution have not been met at the time of the death of the testator, then the will is not valid and the purported testator has died intestate.”
In re Ersoff, 375 Or. 43 (Or. 2026).
In re Ersoff, 375 Or. 43 (Or. 2026).
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 111.005(23) — 1 case
Plue v. Hill, 666 P.2d 835 (Or. Ct. App. 1983).
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 111.005(25) — 2 cases
Brown v. Hackney, 208 P.3d 988 (Or. Ct. App. 2009). “Thus framed, the issue in this case is one of first impression: whether the legislature intended for the amount of a personal representative’s compensation to be based on the proceeds from the settlement of a wrongful death action brought by that personal representative.”
Bigsby v. Vogel, 273 P.3d 284 (Or. Ct. App. 2012).
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 111.005(28) — 6 cases
In Re the Marriage of Githens, 204 P.3d 835 (Or. Ct. App. 2009). “, where the court noted that the distinction between real and personal property in the context of decedent's estates had been abolished by ORS 111.005(28). 312 Or. 307, 313 , 313 n.”
Bedortha v. Sunridge Land Co., Inc., 822 P.2d 694 (Or. 1991). “” Or Laws 1969, ch 591, § 1 (codified at ORS 111.005(28)). 4 Following the decision in Security Bank v.”
Brown v. Hackney, 208 P.3d 988 (Or. Ct. App. 2009). “Thus framed, the issue in this case is one of first impression: whether the legislature intended for the amount of a personal representative’s compensation to be based on the proceeds from the settlement of a wrongful death action brought by that personal representative.”
West v. White, 758 P.2d 424 (Or. Ct. App. 1988). “ORS 111.005(28) provides: “ ‘Real property’ includes all legal and equitable interests in land, in fee and for life.”
West v. White, 766 P.2d 383 (Or. 1988).
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 111.005(30) — 1 case
Taylor v. Sims, 544 P.2d 1063 (Or. Ct. App. 1976).
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 111.005(7) — 8 cases
Waybrant v. Bernstein, 661 P.2d 931 (Or. 1983). “” ORS 111.005(19). It further defines “claim” as including “liabilities of a decedent, whether arising in contract, in tort or otherwise.”
Sheldon v. Sheldon, 987 P.2d 1229 (Or. Ct. App. 1999).
Willbanks v. Goodwin, 689 P.2d 1004 (Or. Ct. App. 1984).
Hitchman v. Burkey, 769 P.2d 799 (Or. Ct. App. 1989).
State v. Cue, 342 P.3d 98 (Or. Ct. App. 2014).
— Or. Rev. Stat. § 111.005(9)(a) — 2 cases
Hammond v. Rush, 345 Or. App. 660 (Or. Ct. App. 2025).
Hammond v. Rush, 345 Or. App. 660 (Or. Ct. App. 2025).
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.