Law Brief: Alexis Gruttadauria and Rich Schoenstein Discuss Why You Need an Estate Plan
Closely-held businesses come in all shapes and sizes. Some owners own 100% of their businesses. Some have partners. Some have children in the business. Some do not. A common question that a client asks the business and...more
Massachusetts is already an unattractive state of residency from an estate tax planning perspective because of its low estate tax filing threshold of $1,000,000 per person. Once a person’s adjusted taxable estate is over $1M...more
The death of a loved one or close friend is a traumatic experience. In addition to the emotional anguish, those who are charged with dealing with the decedent’s personal and financial affairs following death are often left...more
When the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was passed, significant changes were made to the Federal Estate, Gift and Generation-Skipping Transfer Tax, the most prominent of which is the increased applicable exclusion amount, which...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
It’s almost impossible to fully prepare for a spouse’s sudden death, but it helps to keep one’s finances organized and communicate with a spouse about these matters. This article offers points to address in the event a spouse...more
The United States Supreme Court issued its opinion in Obergefell v. Hodges, 576 U.S. ___ (2015) on June 26, 2015. In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court held that the Fourteenth Amendment requires a State to license a marriage...more
Prior to the recent and significant increases in the federal estate tax exemption amount, many clients engaged in planning the purpose of which was to ensure the use of both spouses’ exemption amount through the use of a...more
On Wednesday, 26 June 2013, the US Supreme Court ruled that Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (“DOMA”), which limits the definition of “marriage” to “a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife” and...more
On June 26, 2013, the United States Supreme Court issued a pair of opinions favorable to the gay rights movement, ruling that married same-sex couples are entitled to federal benefits and, by declining to decide a case from...more