Once Removed Episode 19: The Step-Transaction Doctrine and the Case of Smaldino
Once Removed Episode 18: The Reciprocal Trust Doctrine
Once Removed Episode 16: Gift and Estate Tax, Inflation Adjustments for 2024
Once Removed Episode 17: Annual Gifting to Individuals: Options, Opportunities and Pitfalls
To Give or Not to Give: Considerations for Year-End Gifting
Signed into law on July 4, 2025, the OBBBA permanently extends many provisions from the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act while introducing new rules for charitable giving and increasing estate and gift tax thresholds starting...more
On July 4, President Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) into law and as a result enacted numerous significant tax law changes. While this short article will not address each aspect of the OBBBA, it will...more
In this second installment of our multi-part series on the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (the “Act”), my colleague David Knutson and I discuss the changes made by the Act to the federal estate and gift tax regime....more
President Trump’s July 4th signing of the Opportunity, Balance, and Better Budget Act sets an increased $15 million federal estate and gift tax exclusion and generation-skipping transfer tax exemption per individual,...more
The arrival of 2025 brings with it increased estate and gift exclusion amounts. For an estate of any decedent dying during calendar year 2025, the Federal applicable exemption will increase from $13.61 million to $13.99...more
With the end of the year quickly approaching, now is good time to ensure you make your annual exclusion gifts for the year to reduce your taxable estate. For 2024, an individual can give $18,000 (and a married couple...more
Federal Estate, GST and Gift Tax Rates The federal estate, gift and GST applicable exclusion amounts are as summarized below. In simple terms, these dollar figures represent the amount of wealth that each individual can...more
The "big ticket" item of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) is the significant increase to the lifetime gift, estate and generation-skipping tax (GST) tax exemptions. Under the TCJA, the exemptions were increased from $5...more
A record-breaking stock market has again generated significant wealth this year. The gift tax, estate tax and generation-skipping transfer tax are all imposed on the fair market value of assets at the time of transfer. Gifts...more
This year was busy for trusts and estates practitioners. With 2025 marking the final year of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), many of its implications for federal corporate and individual income tax, gift, estate and...more
At the end of 2025, the federal estate and gift tax exemption will dramatically decrease unless Congress affirmatively passes a law saying otherwise. This event is the “sunsetting” of a 2018 federal tax law and is leading...more
In a significant legislative shift, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 doubled the exemption amounts for estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer taxes (collectively known as “Death Taxes”). As of 2024, the federal...more
Because each donor is treated as a separate party for tax and other purposes, donors often involve others in making gifts. For example, a donor might transfer assets to his or her spouse, so the spouse actually makes the gift...more
In 2024, the federal estate, gift, and Generation Skipping Transfer tax exemption amount increased from $12.92 million to $13.61 million per individual (a combined $27.22 million for a married couple), representing an...more
Each year, certain estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer (“GST”) tax figures are subject to inflation adjustments that go in effect on January 1. Below are the current adjustments for 2024....more
The beginning of the year is a good time to think about annual gifts to descendants and other beneficiaries. Episode 17 will walk through some options to make efficient use of annual gifting and also address some potential...more
Current tax laws provide historically high exclusion amounts for the federal estate and generation skipping transfer tax. These exclusion amounts, however, are slated to sunset by roughly 50% at the end of 2025. ...more
At the beginning of 2023, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) increased the amounts individuals can gift free of federal gift and generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax. The amounts now stand at $12,920,000 for individuals and...more
With the summer almost in the rearview, gift-giving may not feel like a top priority. From a tax planning perspective, however, it might be the perfect season to consider making substantial gifts to benefit your family....more
As we start the new year, this Federal Tax Update highlights estate planning-related federal tax information that may be helpful as you consider planning options for 2023. Because Congress could pass legislation that changes...more
During 2022, COVID-19, the war in Ukraine, global inflation, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), the uncertainty about the Build Back Better Act (BBBA), the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), and the Inflation Reduction Act...more
Now that we are firmly into 2022, there are a number of federal tax changes to consider before making gifts. In sum: Gift tax annual exclusion increases from $15,000 to $16,000 - Gift/estate tax lifetime exemption...more
Our annual estate and tax planning newsletter discusses certain concepts and techniques that should be considered in 2022 by our clients and friends in California. Perhaps the most important recent development was the failure...more
As we start the new year, this Federal Tax Update highlights estate planning-related federal tax information that may be helpful as you consider planning options for 2022. Because Congress could pass legislation that changes...more
The estate and gift tax regimes have been permanent and unified since the passage of The American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (the "2012 Act"). In 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the "2017 Act") significantly increased the...more