Last month the United States tax court issues a decision in a case which caught the eye of many involved in estate planning matters. The main issues in the case, Tanenblatt v. Commission of Internal Revenue, was the value of a deceased individual’s interest in a limited liability company. As…
At the beginning of 2013, a federal compromise was reached which seemed to put to rest the uncertainty surrounding the estate tax. Based on the January law, the federal estate tax excludes property up to $5.25 million this year, with that figure set in the future and pegged for inflation.…
Estate tax rates at both the federal and state level are set by lawmakers, and there is little that any individual can do on thee law. However, residents can significantly alter their tax burden with smart estate planning–like prioritizing tax free transfers (to a spouse), using protected trusts, and more.…
One important purpose of estate planning is to ensure that as many assets as possible pass on to friends, families, and charities–instead of Uncle Sam. Using trusts and other legal arrangements to structure an inheritance is a prudent move for all New York families, but particularly those with sizeable assets.…
Do you have enough money to retire? It is a questions that tens of thousands of New Yorkers ask themselves every day. When talking with attorneys and financial advisers, many factors are weighed to determine whether enough resources are available for one to have the type and length of retirement…
Death and taxes; the two constants in life. There has been significant discussion in the past few years over the one tax that is itself most closely tied to death: the estate tax. At the federal level, the President and Congress have debated the exact rate of the the tax…
Our government is based on federalism, which is why we have different laws in individual states as well as federal laws. This allows for legal “experimentation,” with representatives in each state free to make different rules in many areas, from taxation and healthcare to marriage and even crimes. One complexity…
Yesterday was a blockbuster moment for those who believe in equal marriage rights for all couples, as well as all those who follow important developments at the U.S. Supreme Court. That is because he Court issued two opinions that will surely be included in some Constitutional Law textbooks in the…
Earlier this week we touched on the fact that estate tax issues need to be on all New Yorkers’ radar, because the state tax kicks in at a far lower level than the federal tax. The federal rate was seemingly fixed as part of the compromise legislation that averted the…
Much discussion at the end of last year dealt with the estate tax. As federal officials groped for a compromise to avoid the so-called “fiscal cliff,” details about the federal estate tax were one part of the negotiations. Democrats wanted it returned to levels during the Clinton Administration while Republicans…