nyc estate plan

Follow-up Care for Your Estate Plan

Published on: February 14, 2017 | by Ettinger Law Firm

Estate planning is an important step in making sure your assets are secure and will be distributed according to your wishes when you die. It can be a complicated procedure, but an experienced New York estate planning attorney can help you make sure that your estate plan is comprehensive and in line with your particular wishes. However, it is important to remember that once you create an estate plan you should take steps to make sure it is secure and remember circumstances may arise that require you to revisit your estate plan and even possibly revise it.

Where should you keep your estate plan?

It is important to keep your estate plan in a secure location with limited access that will protect it from being damaged. Some individuals choose to use a safe deposit box at a bank while other choose a secure home safe option. If you elect to use a safe deposit box at a bank, it can sometimes be difficult to access that box if you pass away. This difficulty will prolong opening your estate and carrying out your wishes. However, safe deposit boxes do offer an extra layer of security for important documents within an estate plan.

Important Estate Planning Considerations for Business Owners

Published on: February 7, 2017 | by Ettinger Law Firm

While many individuals only need to worry about personal assets, some also need to make plans for the future of their business upon their death. In fact, one of the most essential components of owning is a business is ensuring that it will remain viable should you be unable to. As businesses tend to be owned individually, they usually qualify as an asset that must go through probate. Estate planning can take into account various aspects of business ownership and help ensure that your wishes for your business are carried out as you see fit. You can nominate a person or persons to take ownership of your business, create a financial plan for your business, or do numerous other things that will ensure your hard work continues to thrive the way you would like it to. There are several reasons why it is important for business owners to make provisions for their business as part of their estate plan.

Risk

Failing to create a comprehensive estate plan for a business that you own puts your hard work at risk. A business could potentially end up in probate with various people vying for ownership, which could spell trouble for the business itself as well as its profits. You also risk your business traveling down the line of succession in New York to an individual that you may not want in charge.

Tax Identification Numbers For Trusts

Published on: December 3, 2016 | by Ettinger Law Firm

Trusts are common estate planning tools in which a person can transfer ownership of assets to the trust. While this person is alive, they retain control over the assets in their life. Upon their death, the assets are distributed to the beneficiaries named in the trust.

While the Person is Alive

A revocable trust uses the social security number of the person who created the trust. A revocable trust does not have to file its own tax return. All income is, instead reported in the same manner as any other income on the tax return of the trust creator. People who jointly own a revocable trust, such as a married couple, both hold the power to revoke the trust. This means that either person’s social security number can be used. Couples who file tax returns separately must be careful. The person who reports the income on their personal tax returns should be the same as the person whose social security number is used.

What’s In a Name: Choosing a Name for Your Trust

Published on: November 9, 2016 | by Ettinger Law Firm

A Living Trust is an estate planning vehicle that helps you avoid probate by transferring property to the people and charities of your choice. The assets are held in the trust’s name and not in the name of the individual. For this reason, it is important to appropriately name the trust.

The Importance of a Name

Trust names are important to consider because in order for a trust to legally hold the assets or property, the trust has to be identifiable by its formal name. This name must be distinct and separate from your name.

IRS Proposal To Overturn Common Asset Valuation Planning Met With Fierce Resistance

Published on: August 22, 2016 | by Ettinger Law Firm

Newly proposed IRS regulations meant to curb common estate and gift tax planning tactics is being met with a firestorm of resistance from financial advisers and estate planners across the country. The proposed regulations (REG-163113-02) place limitations on the use of current valuation discounts that reduce the overall value of assets in family-owned businesses, thus lowering a decedent’s estate and gift tax liability at the time of death. The IRS hope to achieve this end by disregarding restrictions that enabled taxpayers to use these discounts in the past.

Wealth Preservation In Closely Held Businesses

Currently, interests in closely held businesses are not taxed the same as other property interests due to their illiquid nature. Many tax and estate planners put a family’s assets in a closely held business to reduce their estate and gift tax liability. While this is a boon for many families seeking to preserve their wealth, others argue that what started out as a helpful tax break for legitimate family businesses is being abused and exploited by those who have no legitimate use of it.

Family Feud Forever: Dr. King’s Family Squabbles Continue

Published on: June 19, 2016 | by Ettinger Law Firm

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. left behind a legacy of peace and understanding, but he may have been surprised by the legacy that his estate is forging. Last Friday, a Fulton County Superior Court Judge declined to make a ruling in a dispute over two items left behind by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, his Bible and his Nobel Peace Prize. Fox News reports that the case over these two items is likely to go to trial, with King’s estate, controlled by his two sons, against their sister, Bernice. This is only one of many lawsuits that have crept up in years past over the legacy of Dr. King.

Managing Estate Assets and Legacies

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s estate is not technically what many would consider an estate in the traditional sense. It is not a probate estate, with his assets being liquidated according to his will. Rather, Dr. King’s estate is the for-profit Martin Luther King Jr. Estate Inc. with his three surviving children being the sole shareholders and directors. As the sole shareholders and directors, his three children control Dr. King’s name, image, likeness and his possessions.

QUALIFIED TERMINABLE INTEREST PROPERTY TRUST

Published on: November 30, 2015 | by Ettinger Law Firm

QTIP TRUSTS – WHAT IS IT?

In our society, with divorces as common as it is, many people would likely benefit from a qualified terminable interest property (QTIP) trust. The QTIP trust gives a stream of income produced from a trust to a surviving spouse. That money passes without payment of any estate tax, as the spouse enjoys the unlimited marital deduction for estate taxes. The surviving spouse does not obtain title to the income producing property or control over it. The QTIP trust documents control where it goes after the surviving spouse passes away. It allows for the interim benefit of the surviving spouse, while preserving the income producing property. After the surviving spouse passes, the property goes to the heirs as designated by the QTIP trust.

ELEMENTS OF A QTIP TRUST