In In re Estate of Neal, Larry Ronald Neal executed a will in which he bequeathed his personal property to his niece, Valorie Jean White,…

Aside from corporate tax reductions, one of the most important aspects of the new Tax Cuts and Jobs Act beginning this year is the new…

When children with disabilities turn 18, your ability as a parent to make decisions for their care and future become limited. Specific long-term planning decisions…

Incapacity planning is a major component of an estate plan. Quite often people name one person to serve as a health care agent and another person…

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, signed into law on December 22, 2017, includes significant changes to the U.S. federal gift, estate, and generation-skipping transfer…

This State Death Tax chart is maintained for the McGuireWoods LLP Website and is updated regularly. Please see full chart below for more information….By: McGuireWoods…

In the most recent installment of the McGuireWoods Fiduciary Advisory Services annual multipart series on recent fiduciary cases, developments in the law concerning various topics…

The Tennessee Supreme Court has now determined that money withdrawn from a joint checking account and placed into a certificate of deposit in the name…

Another holiday season will have come and gone before we know it. For many, the start of 2018 will be a time of empty commitment…

Estate and gift tax planning are among the many areas of tax law impacted by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which takes effect on…

As a general rule, an accountant, qua accountant, is not a fiduciary, absent special facts. That having been said, the accountant for a trustee in…

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, providing extraordinary estate planning opportunities, was signed into law by the President on December 22, 2017. The new Act…

The IRS announced yesterday, in IR 2017-210 (the “Advisory”), that state property taxes must be “assessed” in 2017 in order for such taxes to be…

On December 22, 2017, the President signed into law H.R. 1, informally known as the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” (the “Act”), implementing sweeping changes…

On December 22, 2017, the tax reform bill, commonly referred to as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (the Act), was signed into…

The sudden death of Alexander Calderwood, the brilliant but troubled co-founder of the Ace brand of hotels, resulted in some fierce litigation between Calderwood’s estate…

On December 22, 2017, the President signed into law H.R. 1, informally known as the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” (the “Act”), implementing sweeping changes…

The new tax bill passed by Congress and signed into law by the President today has increased the amount individuals can transfer free of Gift,…

This is the sixth issue in a planned series of alerts designed to provide an in-depth analysis on topics related to tax reform. Like all…

Congress has passed a major tax reform bill and it is expected to be signed into law in the next few days. This bill doubles…

In Estate of Crawford, after the first day of a will contest, the parties’ attorneys announced on the record that they agreed that neither party…

On December 20, 2017, Congress passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Act”) instituting sweeping changes to the Internal Revenue Code. By now, many…

On December 19, 2017, the Senate passed the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017” (H.R. 1) (the “Bill”). The House of Representatives passed the…

Congress has passed a major overhaul of the US tax system. The measure passed 224 to 201 in the House and 51-48 in the Senate,…

For this post, we are fortunate to be joined by Stuart C. Sherman, a California Licensed Professional Fiduciary with ConservaTrust Fiduciary Services, Inc. in Los…

The major estate and gift tax change in the Conference Committee version of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 is a doubling of…

The Winter 2017 issue of The Fine Print focuses on family law and estate planning and features articles on prenuptial agreements, what to know if…

New Jersey recently enacted the Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act (the “Act”). In general, the Act provides executors, trustees, guardians, and power of…

A recent post to this blog titled You’ve Got (E-)Mail! Can Your Survivors Access It After Your Death?, discussed New York’s recently-enacted digital assets legislation,…

It’s the holiday season and while New Year’s resolutions are still several days away, it’s never too early to start planning for the procrastinators among…

People typically picture the probate process going something like this: a person dies, you find their will, you take the will to the courthouse, the…

December Interest Rates for GRATs, Sales to Defective Grantor Trusts, Intra-Family Loans and Split Interest Charitable Trusts – The December § 7520 rate for use…

The House-Senate Conference Committee released the revised “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” on Dec. 15, 2017. This compromise bill made major changes to the separate…

After staying the same for five years, the amount you can give away to any one individual in a particular year without reporting the gift…

You may be afraid of losing your home if you have to enter a nursing home and apply for Medicaid. While this fear is well-founded,…

A woman who dropped divorce proceedings three days after her husband died is entitled to the proceeds from his insurance policy but cannot claim his…

In In re Estate of Chapman, Peoples Bank (the Bank) conducted a non-judicial foreclosure sale of secured real estate owned by an estate and then…

I. INTRODUCTION – This outline is a selective and evolving review of the history of the modern federal estate tax. It originated during the attempts…

A person who executes a valid agreement to make a testamentary disposition as to a specific item of property is precluded from making an alternative…

The days, weeks, and months after the death of a loved one can be emotional and stressful, especially if you are named the executor of…

Notice 2017-73, released on December 4, 2017, describes potential approaches that may be taken to address issues raised regarding the use of donor advised funds…

If plans call to relocate to another country after retirement, be aware that they may be tarnished if a person doesn’t look into all potential…

The U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate have now passed separate versions of the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.” The proposals that are…

As of this writing, it’s still anybody’s guess as to whether Congress will enact major tax reform legislation affecting federal gift and estate taxes. This…

A recent California appellate case, Stewart v. Superior Court (2017) 16 Cal.App.5th 87, validates the primacy of medical powers of attorney and (as they are…

Many commentators and clients today voice a concern with avoiding probate. While this blog is not intended to address the desire or merit in avoiding…

Intellectual property (IP), such as copyrights and patents, can hold enormous value. Whether IP rights are a significant source of wealth or only a small…

If a person expects to receive an inheritance from a family member, he or she might choose to use a qualified disclaimer to refuse the…

As we approach the end of the year, we thought you would find it useful to have the following summary of recent developments and updates…

After much wrangling and dealmaking, both houses of Congress have passed bills making substantial changes to federal tax law. Although it’s not entirely certain, it…

In This Issue: – When should you turn down an inheritance? – Addressing intellectual property requires careful estate planning – Year end is an ideal…

In 2017, South Carolina’s Supreme Court decided The Protestant Episcopal Church in the Diocese of South Carolina [the “Disassociated Diocese”] v. The Protestant Episcopal Church…

I. INTRODUCTION – This outline is a selective and evolving review of the history of the modern federal estate tax. It originated during the attempts…

Effective January 1, 2018, North Carolina has a new power of attorney statute: the North Carolina version of the Uniform Power of Attorney Act. This…

All of us increasingly rely on online accounts and electronic devices. Many of us own assets that exist only in electronic book entry form or…

What does it mean to “own” something? Owning something means different things to different people. Owning something suggests a sense of full control over something.…

The two sons of legendary “B-Movie King” Roger Corman have made it clear through multiple lawsuits that they believe their parents are mismanaging trusts set…

It now seems more likely that a tax bill of some kind will be passed by Congress this year. One prominent DC tax lobbyist told…

If enacted, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act could open up significant estate planning opportunities. The House bill doubles the exemptions from estate, gift and…

The Importance of Medical and Financial Powers of Attorney and Healthcare Directives for Young Adults: a Q&A with PK Law Estate Planning Attorney Cheryl Jones.…

In the most recent installment of the McGuireWoods Fiduciary Advisory Services annual multipart series on recent fiduciary cases, developments in the law concerning various topics…

The concept of portability, permanently enacted as part of the amendments to the estate tax law under the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012, allows…

When you want to sue to dissolve a business in New York on behalf of the estate of a deceased shareholder, to which court should…

Imagine you’ve thought you were married for a decade and all of a sudden your spouse denies that you were ever married at all. The…

Do you or did you have a wealthy relative from a different country? Did that relative make you a beneficiary of a non-U.S. trust? Lucky…

The New Jersey Tax Court recently released its opinion in Estate of Ruth Oberg, NJ Tax Court, Docket No 000240 (October 24, 2017), upholding the…

2018 Estate, Gift and GST Tax Update: What This Means for Your Current Will, Revocable Trust and Estate Plan – As we previously reported, the…

It’s the holiday season…one of the busiest times of the year. So, it’s a pretty safe bet that folks are not spending time right now…

In In re Ng, after a jury found that a deceased trustee did not breach fiduciary duties, a trial court nonetheless ordered the deceased trustee’s…

Since our last newsletter, there has been one significant development in the Probate and Family Court, and one decision of note. First, effective as of…

On Thursday, November 16, 2017, House and Senate legislators took significant steps towards achieving the most extensive tax reform in over a decade, with the…

While proposals for the eventual elimination of the estate tax are being hashed out in Congress, the IRS effort of auditing estate tax returns continues…

After months of delay, the Connecticut General Assembly passed, and the Governor signed in large part, a budget bill in the last days of October.…

No contest clauses are an ever-evolving area of the probate law in California. The Court of Appeal further refined the rules governing no contest clauses…

On November 2, 2017, the House Ways and Means Committee (the “House Committee”) released its plan for comprehensive tax reform: the “Tax Cuts and Jobs…

The IRS released its 2018 tax adjustments – the following table summarizes the transfer tax adjustments. Note that some of these adjustments will become moot…

Choosing the right person to serve as trustee of a special needs trust is one of the most important and difficult issues in creating the…

Are you using the right business entity for your farm or other agribusiness? I have worked with too many clients who have paid additional tax…

Posted by HBR.org: 2017-11-16 15:00:15 UTC rosmaro/Getty Images Can a large incumbent company rediscover how to act like an agile start-up? I believe the answer is yes, though success depends largely on another question: Can the executive team learn to get out of the way? Behaving like an agile start-up implies speed, a sharply defined […]

Who is the Better Planner for Your Affairs: You or the State? Planning for succession of a closely held business is a lot like making…

The ultra-wealthy are allocating more of their money to equities and less to hedge funds and real estate this year, a survey of family offices…

The Senate version of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act includes the House Bill’s increases in federal estate and gift tax exemption amounts – doubling…

A New York real estate deal valued at close to $1 billion came to a grinding halt when the underlying animosities between a late developer’s…

We drafted a tax alert that addresses the impact of the much anticipated “Tax Cut and Jobs Act” (H.R. 1) on the taxation of U.S.…

On November 2, the House Ways and Means Committee released a draft tax reform bill known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The Senate…

The Senate Finance Committee Chairman’s Mark for the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act,” released Nov. 9, describes in detail the Senate tax bill and is…

The South Carolina Supreme Court recently clarified liability for aiding and abetting a breach of fiduciary duty. In Bennett v. Carter, 2017 WL 5163467, the…

You may have had conversations with family members about whether you would be willing to serve as a trustee of a trust for the children…

It is a fundamental principle of law that a Last Will and Testament duly signed and witnessed is binding on no one until the person…

On November 2, 2017, a bill called the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” was introduced to the United States House of Representatives. The bill seeks…

Beneficiaries who want to change a trust’s corporate trustee may have a much harder time under a recent Pennsylvania Supreme Court decision. The state high…

We all want to provide the best for our children, but most of us do not want to face the task of putting an estate…

In the past, New York Courts have demonstrated a willingness to apply the theory of promissory estoppel, to overcome the legal requirements of the Statute…

I. INTRODUCTION – This outline is a selective and evolving review of the history of the modern federal estate tax. It originated during the attempts…

You’ve just discovered that you’ve been named trustee of a trust. Not only are you unsure of whether you should accept, you’re also wondering what…

The executor of a decedent’s estate has a duty to act in a prudent manner and in accordance with the law. At times, this may…

Typically, a trust must file a separate income tax return for each calendar year. However, for most grantor trusts, filing a separate tax return is…

In Barcroft v. Walton, a statutory probate court entered sanctions, struck a defendant’s pleadings, and entered a default judgment against a defendant in a trust…

Many commentators expected that the new tax bill would pair the repeal of basis step-up at death with the repeal of the estate tax. They…

Serving as Executor can at times be more of a headache than an honor. On top of a pile of paperwork and dealing with a…

Many estate planning provisions of the Internal Revenue Code contain brackets, exemptions, exclusions, deductions, or other figures that the IRS adjusts annually for inflation. Every…

A summary of the proposed Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was released this morning (11/2/17) and reveals some major changes. The federal estate tax and…

From Esau, who rashly traded his birthright to his twin brother Jacob for a cup of soup, to King Lear’s ill-conceived plan to leave his…

This article originally appeared on Time Money Magazine. By Walter Updegrave October 25, 2017 Source URL: http://time.com/money/4992712/3-ways-to-make-sure-youre-ready-for-surprise-costs-in-retirement/ You’ve saved diligently, built an impressive nest egg and now you’re ready to call it a career. Great, just one question: Do you really know how much you’ll have to shell out each year to cover your expenses […]

The following article is authored by Jean Whitney, a philanthropic advisor at Ropes & Gray. She works with families, charitable trusts and private foundations to…

On October 26, 2017, David F. Johnson presented “Legislative Update Impacting Fiduciaries,” to the Texas Bankers Association’s Advanced Trust & Portfolio Management Forum in San…

On January 1, 2013, I posted on JDSUPRA some content entitled “Trial lawyers beware of the in terrorem trust clause: A nasty trap that can…

In a proceeding contesting the validity of a will, the proponent of the will only has the burden to establish that the will was executed…

To assist you in your planning, we are happy to report the following inflation adjustments to key estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer tax (“GST”) exclusion…

Around this time every year, the IRS looks at whether there has been a year-over-year increase in the Consumer Price Index and announces inflation adjustments…

In Steer Wealth Mgmt., LLC v. Denson, Denson, in her individual capacity and as executor of her husband’s estate, sued Steer Wealth Management, LLC, for…

There are a number of estate planning strategies that work well to move assets in an efficient manner from one generation to another within a…

After much thought and consideration, Alice decided to update her Last Will and Testament to change the amounts her two sons, Bob and Charles, will…

Wilmington Trust serves as the sole trustee for certain du Pont Family Trusts established in the 1940s and 1950s. For many years, Wilmington Trust was…

I. INTRODUCTION – This outline is a selective and evolving review of the history of the modern federal estate tax. It originated during the attempts…

When Grateful Dead front man Jerry Garcia died in 1995, he left his custom guitars to the man who made them. But Douglas Irwin, who…

On October 19, IRS issued Revenue Procedure 2017-58, announcing inflation adjustments for 2018 for dozens of important figures across the Internal Revenue Code, including the…

The IRS has announced the 2018 inflation adjustments for many tax provisions, including exemptions for estate, gift and generation-skipping transfer taxes and the annual exclusion…

Norma Stanley and Derren Ciaglia explain the similarities of estate planning and family law, and give some examples of how to protect your assets in…

As it does every year at this time, the Internal Revenue Service has announced updated numbers for 2018 relating to estate and gift taxes (as…

The gift tax annual exclusion will increase from $14,000 to $15,000 next year, allowing donors to give up to $15,000 ($30,000 combined for married couples)…