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Mar
2018 Estate Tax and Gift Tax Changes
“It’s tough to make predictions, especially about the future. ” Yogi Berra With the recently passed tax bill there is finally an official pronouncement from the IRS on the 2018 estate and gift tax exemptions. The IRS announced in October of this year that the gifting exemption bot...
View MoreCategories: Estate Planning Firm Legal Advice Taxation Trusts
06
Mar
Value is in the Eye of The Holder and the IRS Views Things Differently
Just as beauty is in the eye of the holder, it is often said that value is in the eye of the holder since it is a relative term and depends upon the context. In estate planning, the great majority of IRS challenges to wealth transfers focuses on hard to value assets. The New York...
View MoreCategories: Estate Planning Taxation
25
Mar
Strauss Attorneys, PLLC – Year End Tax Letter
By Lorin G. Page, J. D. , L. L. M. As we approach the end of 2017, we at Strauss Attorneys, PLLC would like to remind you of measures you can take to minimize your income tax liability. By taking proactive steps to secure credits and deductions, or accelerating or postponing income o...
View MoreCategory: Advisors
06
Mar
The Tax Benefits of Educational Trusts
Use of standalone Educational Trusts – those created specifically for the educational (and sometimes medical) expenses of children and grandchildren – is far less common since the ready availability of 529 Plans. 529 Plans have contribution limitations (varying by state) that are...
View MoreCategories: Estate Planning Taxation Trusts
06
Mar
Non-Citizen Spouses and Qualifying Domestic Trusts
In our increasingly globalized world, many American citizens have non-citizen spouses. This can present a serious problem when such couples consider estate planning. Normally, Internal Revenue Code Section 2056(d) denies the marital deduction to non-citizen spouses of a deceased...
View MoreCategory: Trusts
06
Mar
Estate Planning in the Face of Divorce
No doubt the commencement of a divorce is unsettling, chaotic, and emotionally draining. But that said, divorces happen in stages. Separation precedes the divorce, and there is often even a period before separation where the inevitable becomes apparent and you’ve made a decision...
View MoreCategory: Estate Planning
06
Mar
Will Caveats vs. Full Scale Lawsuits
In the recent case of Finks v. Middleton (N. C. App. 2016), we saw the court wrestle with an issue that has become all too common. This case arose from a bitter sibling dispute between a brother and sister. Mother had executed a will in 2009 passing her assets equally to three chi...
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06
Mar
Keeping Beneficiaries “Happy” Leads to Punitive Damage Award
In April 2017, I was made aware of a case arising out of Mississippi where a corporate trustee was the trustee of a trust left for the benefit of a widow. The case discussed at length how far the trustee went to conceal from the trust beneficiary the fact that the trust corpus wa...
View MoreCategories: Estate Planning Trust Administration Trusts
06
Mar
2017 Brings Big Changes for Captive Insurance Owners: The PATH Act Diversification Tests for Section 831(b) Captive Insurance Companies
In 2015, Congress passed the PATH Act, enacting substantial changes to the law governing captive insurance companies, Internal Revenue Code Section 831(b). This article briefly discusses how those changes affect the use of captives in combination with certain estate planning te...
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Mar
No Wills, Old Wills, Trust Mills and other Estate Planning Ills
In estate planning consultations, I often tell clients that for most people, having no estate plan is better than having a badly drafted or very old one. North Carolina probate law contains default provisions for those who die “intestate,” or without a will (or trust). Those defa...
View MoreCategories: Estate Planning Trusts
