The State of the States: 2017The State of the States: 2017

State legislatures have been very busy on a number of trust- and estate-related fronts. Here’s an update on some key planning developments across the country, through Nov. 15, 2017.

Estate and Gift Tax  

To be more competitive, some jurisdictions with separate estate taxes have been increasing the amount that’s exempt from state estate taxes or even phasing out their estate or inheritance taxes. What happens at the federal level will be key in determining the trickle-down effect for those states that tie their exemption amounts to the federal exemption. If the federal exemption amount doubles (or is repealed) and the intent wasn’t to mimic such a dramatic change in the state exemption amount, it’s likely that state legislatures will need t...