Top Gun: Maverick - Core Estate Plan and Gifting Basics
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
Gift Tax Basics
NGE On Demand: GRAT Trusts with Eric Mann
To Give or Not to Give: Considerations for Year-End Gifting
The 2010 Tax Relief Act and your estate plan
For individual clients, the Legislation provides estate and tax planning opportunities, including through the increase in the federal gift, estate and generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax exemptions....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
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
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
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
Historically, only the very wealthy engaged in generation-skipping estate planning. Families and individuals who do not think of themselves as "very wealthy," however, also can reap significant benefits from this type of...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
The IRS recently confirmed that, for 2022, the aggregate amount that can be given away without being subject to the gift or estate tax will increase to $12.06 million per individual. Thus, as of 2022, a married couple...more
The updated version of the Build Back Better Act released by the House Budget Committee on November 3, 2021, does not include any of the significant gift tax, estate tax, generation-skipping transfer tax or grantor trust...more
Last month, the House Ways & Means Committee (the "Committee") approved draft legislation (the “Legislation”) as part of Congress' ongoing $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation process. The Legislation includes significant tax...more
The U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means’ tax proposals would significantly impact estate planning for high net worth individuals if enacted. Gift, estate and GST exemption amounts would be decreased; grantor trusts would...more
In 2020, COVID-19, the US presidential election, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the TCJA), and the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (the CARES ACT) dominated the planning landscape....more
The 2020 election is less than a month away and year-end estate planning is already underway for many. Under current law, the estate, gift and GST (generation-skipping transfer) tax exemptions for 2020 are set at $11,580,000...more
Major tax reform discussions are ongoing in Washington and Sacramento while everyone at home is busy navigating the pandemic. Many commentators are predicting that budgetary pressures resulting from the COVID-19 stimulus...more
In the wake of COVID-19, we may see significant statutory changes to the federal estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer tax exemptions. Spousal Lifetime Access Trusts and other planning techniques provide...more
In 2019, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the Act) and its resulting tax reform continued to dominate the planning landscape. As outlined in our 2018 Year-End Estate Planning Advisory, the Act made significant changes to individual...more
You may have heard by now that the Gift and Estate Tax exemption amount was increased by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, which became effective on January 1, 2018. This article is to highlight some of the key estate...more
As a general rule, it is advisable to revisit your estate plan every few years, or if some major change occurs in your personal circumstances or in applicable law. Recent historic changes to the tax law warrant revisiting...more
Federal Transfer Taxes - The Internal Revenue Service has announced the annual inflation adjustments for the 2019 tax year... Federal unified gift and estate tax exclusion increasing to $11,400,000: As of January 1,...more
Congress's recent increase in the federal estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer ("GST") tax exemption to $10 million per person adjusted annually for inflation ($11.18 million in 2018) is a welcome sweetener for many...more
Individuals and businesses continue to evaluate the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (the “Tax Act” or “Act”) and, in particular, the specific effects on personal and business tax planning. Our clients are asking us daily how...more
I. INTRODUCTION - This outline is a selective and evolving review of the history of the modern federal estate tax. It originated during the attempts to repeal the estate tax in President Clinton’s second term and...more
Increase in Exemption from Estate, Gift and Generation-Skipping Transfer Taxes - On December 22, 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the "Act") was signed into law. The Act implements a variety of significant tax reforms....more
Tax Act of 2017: Transfer Tax Provisions - The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (the “Tax Act of 2017”) was signed by the President on December 22, 2017. The transfer tax provisions of the Tax Act of 2017 (i.e. the estate,...more
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Act”), signed into law on December 22, 2017, significantly increased the exemption amounts for the federal estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer taxes. These increases may present...more