Professor Beyer over at the Wills, Trusts & Estates Prof Blog links to an article in L.A. Times titled, Wrangling over Michael Jackson’s Estate could revive sales of online wills. While it is a good thing for people who have no estate planning documents to take steps to get them done, an online will is not… Read More
Article: Finance 101 – Estate Tax hits few ordinary people
A recent Associated Press article on the Estate Tax provides some basic background information. Read the rest of the article, with more questions and answers here. Q: What assets are included in an estate? A: The federal estate tax is calculated by adding up the fair market value of what you own — cash and… Read More
Valuation, Timing, and Michael Jackson
Today I am going to use the Michael Jackson case (yet again) as an example to discuss the important issue of timing when determining the value of assets included in a Decedent’s estate for estate tax purposes. As I’ve written before, the estate tax generally is imposed upon the value of a decedent’s estate at… Read More
Steve McNair died without a Will. The consequences could be disastrous.
In contrast to my recent postings about Michael Jackson who appears to have engaged in professional estate planning before his death, there are reports that former NFL quarterback Steve McNair died intestate, or without a will. His wife (the wife he was cheating on with the woman who killed him) was appointed “administrator” of his estate. According… Read More
Valuation, the Estate Tax, and Timing
I’m out of town for the weekend, so blogging will be light. But I wanted to ask a quick question for people to ponder. I’ve written that the estate tax applies to the value of property owned by a decedent at death. The question I have is this. Is it the instant before death, or… Read More
Morningstar: Avoid These Estate-Planning Pitfalls
There is a well written and informative article at Morningstar.com entitled Avoid These Estate Planning Pitfalls. In an interview with estate planning attorney H. Susan Jones, Christine Benz, Morningstar’s Director of Personal Finance discussess certain common mistakes that many people make, espeicially in regards to Beneficiary designations. These include Unintentionally disinheriting grandchildren if the grandchild’s… Read More
Are Michael Jackson’s Funeral Costs Deductible for Estate Tax Purposes?
One of the blogs on my daily reading list is the “Tax Girl” (a/k/a Kelly Phillips Erb, a Philadelphia tax attorney). She has a regularly occurring feature on her blog called “Ask the Tax Girl” which she uses to answer readers’ tax questions (and sometimes, when necessary, gives her readers the motherly advice that they deserve… Read More
Estate Tax Legislation in 2009: Avoiding the Train Wreck
Beth Shapiro Kaufman of Caplin & Drysdale recently published an article in Estate Planning Magazinerecently published an article in Estate Planning Magazine entitled “United States: Estate Tax Legislation In 2009: Avoiding The Train Wreck.” In it, she discusses the fact that the estate tax is scheduled to disappear next year and come back with a vengance… Read More
Kiplinger.com — 4 Estate Planning Lessons from Michael Jackson
I was interviewed last week by Kiplinger Magazine regarding some of the legal issues involving the Michael Jackson estate. The article has been published and is here.
Valuation — A Critical Component of Estate Planning for the Wealthy
As I have previously written, the estate tax is imposed upon taxable estates of more than $3,500,000. Any amount over $3,500,000 is currently taxed at the rate of 45%. As an estate planning attorney, my clients generally fall into one of three categories: People whose assets are far below the lifetime exemption People whose assets… Read More
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