PPC1 Probate & Tax study plan

Map the full probate administration timeline from petition through final distribution, labeling each required filing and the official or clerk responsible for it

Distinguish formal versus informal probate, testate versus intestate administration, and independent versus supervised administration in writing

Identify the duties and priority of appointment of personal representatives, including disqualification and conflict-of-interest triggers

Explain the mechanics of asset marshaling, inventory, and notice to creditors well enough to teach it to a colleague

Compare the major categories of non-probate transfers and state why each bypasses the probate estate

Apply the rules of intestate succession to at least five hypothetical family structures and justify each distribution

Outline the execution formalities for a valid will and list the common grounds for contest

Contrast revocation by physical act, by subsequent instrument, and by operation of law

Compute the gross estate by classifying assets under the applicable inclusion provisions

Apply the marital and charitable deductions to reduce taxable estate in practice computations

Explain how adjusted taxable gifts interact with the estate tax computation

Calculate the tentative tax and unified credit offset for a mid-size estate

Distinguish the annual exclusion, lifetime exemption, and gift-splitting rules and apply them to gift scenarios

Determine income-tax basis for assets acquired by gift, by inheritance, and by community property rules

Explain portability of the deceased spousal unused exclusion and the election required to claim it

Identify which transfer tax returns are triggered by which events and who must sign them

Differentiate trustee powers, duties, and the standards of care owed to beneficiaries

Apply the principal-and-income allocation rules to receipts and disbursements in a sample trust

Explain fiduciary accounting income versus taxable income and where they diverge

Identify breach-of-fiduciary-duty remedies and the surcharge process

Compute distributable net income and the distribution deduction for a simple trust

Determine the decedent's final return period and which income items belong on it versus the estate return

Apply the tier system to distributions to beneficiaries and trace character through to the beneficiary

Explain the grantor trust rules and when trust income is taxed to the grantor

Apply the practitioner's duties of competence, confidentiality, and avoidance of conflicts to estate planning engagements

Identify who the client is when spouses or multiple family members are involved and document that determination

Recognize the ethical limits on representing both a fiduciary and beneficiaries

Outline a practice-management system for engagement letters, deadlines, and file retention

Build a deadline calendar covering the key estate, gift, fiduciary income, and portability filings with their due dates and extension rules

Sequence the required notices and filings in a probate matter from death through closing

Identify the penalties and interest consequences of late or missed filings

Complete a timed mixed-domain practice set under exam conditions