So, is estate planning an endangered profession or what? The sword of permanent estate tax repeal has been hanging over planners' heads for more than a year now, seeming to threaten many with the loss of their main livelihoods. And just as it...
Two in 2005 had enormous ramifications for estate planning. The first was actually a nonevent; the dog didn't bite the man: The Republicans failed to eliminate permanently the estate tax or even reform it in any way. While the threat of permanent...
Back in 2001, Congress enacted sweeping changes to the transfer tax system, including a host of technical corrections that are important to practitioners. As with all the other provisions of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of...
Upon accepting a trust, a trustee may be given a non-binding letter of wishes by the settlor.1 Such statements are designed to offer trustees of discretionary trusts some guidance in the exercise of their discretion. (For a typical letter of...
Private foundations are usually organized as trusts or not-for-profit corporations. When choosing between the two, advisors tend to focus on ease of formation and maintenance, flexibility and standards for trustees or directors. They generally don...
Revenue Procedure 2005-241 published April 18, 2005 and effective as of March 30, 2005 is among the most controversial rulings promulgated by the Internal Revenue Service in recent memory. It has been roundly criticized by estate planners and...
The enactment of Internal Revenue Code Section 27021 in 1990 sounded a virtual death knell for the grantor retained income trust (GRIT). The GRIT fell into disuse, so much so that it is often overlooked even in the few circumstances that its use...
Peter Jennings, the longtime ABC News anchorman born in Canada, wound up living the American dream and dying with an estate worth in excess of $50 million, according to the probate petition filed late September with the New York County Surrogate's...
From David A. Handler, partner in the Chicago office of Kirkland & Ellis LLP, we have this report: Transfer restrictions in a family limited partnership agreement are disregarded In Estate of Sidney E. Smith III v. United States, No. 02-264 Erie ...
For most advisors, Let's look at your IRA beneficiaries is about the 39th step in the financial planning process if it gets addressed at all. Worse yet, most clients are not even aware who will inherit their IRAs (some divorced individuals, for...
