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Showing 35 posts tagged estate planning.
Exemption Portability - What is it, and how does it work?
The term "portability" is used in many contexts, but in the estate planning context portability describes the way a surviving spouse can use the remainder of a deceased spouse's unused exclusion amount to further shield her or his estate from tax liability. Portability first came about in 2010 as a temporary concept in the Tax Relief, Unemployment Reauthorization and Job Creation Act of 2010. It was set to expire on December 31, 2012, but Congress, in the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012, made portability a permanent part of the estate and gift tax exclusion. The current unified exemption for estate and gift taxes is $5.43 million (for the year 2015), so portability allows for a potentially very large tax break for a surviving spouse's estate. More >
Nothing is uncertain like death taxes
There's a saying about death and taxes, the certainty thereof, which has been oft repeated to the point of weariness. While it is true that the imposition of taxes is a certainty, the shape and form of such taxes, especially in an estate planning context, is anything but. Just when one believes the ground to be firm in any particular tax context, the sands begin shifting. The federal estate tax has been just such an example the past several years, and estate plans should account for future uncertainty. More >
Preserving Assets in a Will Contest
There may come a time when one finds it necessary to contest a will, and there can be legitimate reasons for doing so. This course of action is likely to cause emotions to run high, and it could be likely that a beneficiary under the will at issue may, upon receipt of estate assets, choose to sell, gift, convert or otherwise dispose of those assets, even during the pendency of the will contest. It becomes paramount for the contesting party, then, to preserve those assets for the duration of the litigation, if only to ensure that the estate remains intact by the end of the action. The mechanism for preserving the estate is not unique to estate administration and probate, but rather a simple and effective equitable remedy, injunctive relief. Injunctive relief effectively freezes the status quo and prevents depletion of the estate assets until all claims are settled. More >
Is it time to revisit one's estate plan?
It can be hard enough to realize the value of an estate plan. Those who realize such value can still fall into the trap of believing that such a plan is a "one and done" proposition, a set of documents that only needs to be executed once and requires no maintenance. Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth. Estate plans should evolve, and just as one's financial situation and family members may change, so should the corresponding estate planning documents. Luckily, there are certain milestones that can hint that an estate plan should be given a tune-up, and these life markers are easy to spot. More >
Estate Planning for Same-Sex Couples After Obergefell
Many areas of the law are left unanswered by Supreme Court's decision in Obergefell , but the fundamental question of whether same-sex individuals can marry has now been answered. There have traditionally been many obstacles LGBT individuals face when it comes to estate planning and taxes, but those obstacles have been cleared a great deal by the Obergefell decision. Married same-sex couples now have access to new tools concerning estate and tax planning that will help them benefit in the same ways that only heterosexual marriages have until now. More >
Trustee Discretion and Liability of an Individual
It's an understatement to say that the role of the trustee is fraught with pitfalls. Often times, a settlor creates a trust to suit his or her needs, but rarely does the settlor take into consideration, the difficulties the trustee will face when administering the trust. The discretion given to the trustee can provide a gateway for added liability, and the creation of a trust should take the twin concerns of trustee discretion and trustee liability into as much consideration as the disposition of the trust assets. More >
The Evolving Duty of Trustee Communication with Beneficiaries
Trustee communications with beneficiaries have followed an interesting legal path in Kentucky. The original Kentucky statute regarding communication with the beneficiaries required that the trustee must keep the beneficiaries reasonably informed about trust activities. This statute, KRS 386.715, did not make a distinction between revocable and irrevocable trusts. The traditional presumption is that a settlor may change a revocable trust at will, and thus the trustee of a revocable trust did not have a duty to notify beneficiaries of trust status, as the identity of the beneficiaries could potentially be in flux. More >
Planning for Incapacity
While an estate plan has obvious uses - i.e., planning for the disposition of estate assets after the death of a testator - some of the lesser-known benefits of a well-written plan are the provisions that provide for both management of assets and instructions for personal care in the event of incapacity. More >
Estate Planning for the Digital Life
While individuals will eventually pass on, the internet is forever. Online accounts from games, apps and social media are becoming increasingly valuable. In an age of expanding online presence, estate planners and administrators should take into account the digital life of the client or the decedent, even if online accounts may not always trigger ownership or property issues. More >
Be Wary of Estate Tax Provisions in the Proposed Fiscal Year 2016 Budget
It's time to call your estate and financial planners - new tax provisions in the proposed FY 2016 budget once again show the specter of potentially brutal taxes at death for the moderately wealthy. While these taxes exist only in the proposal stage for now and have to pass through the gauntlet of an opposition Congress, it's never too early to take a look at your estate and plan ahead. More >
