What is an Irrevocable Trust?
Sometimes, the terms of an irrevocable trust (one that cannot be amended or revoked) were appropriate at the time the trust was created, but subsequent events or circumstances make the terms of the old trust impractical,...more
You likely have created revocable or irrevocable trusts, or a few of both, in your estate plan. Ideally, these have been properly drafted with plenty of flexibility so that they can continue to meet your wealth planning goals...more
September 2024 AFRs and 7520 Rate - The September 2024 Section 7520 rate for use with estate planning techniques such as CRTs, CLTs, QPRTs and GRATs is 4.8%, a decrease from the August 2024 rate of 5.2%. The September...more
The September 2024 Section 7520 rate for use with estate planning techniques such as CRTs, CLTs, QPRTs and GRATs is 4.8%, a decrease from the August 2024 rate of 5.2%. The September applicable federal rate (“AFR”) for use...more
As its name implies, an irrevocable trust cannot be revoked by the person who establishes the trust. Typically, an irrevocable trust also cannot be changed by a trustee or beneficiary. The irrevocable nature makes the trust a...more
Sometimes, the terms of an irrevocable trust (one that cannot be amended or revoked) were fine at the time the trust was created, but subsequent events or circumstances make the terms of the old trust impractical, unwanted,...more
Building flexibility into your estate plan using various strategies is generally advised. The reason is that life circumstances change over time, specifically changing tax laws and family circumstances. ...more
In a recent post, I remarked that as a corporate and securities lawyer I was unfamiliar with the term "decanting" in respect to trusts. Much to my surprise, I have since learned that last year California actually enacted a...more
This week has brought a much-anticipated decision by the Supreme Judicial Court regarding trust decanting, and the past month also brought the latest chapters in two cases that we reported on previously....more
Decanting has been Texas law for almost three months and several articles have discussed what can be accomplished by decanting (e.g., Bill Pargaman’s 2013 Legislative Update). This article will discuss the documents needed...more
Inherent in a trustee’s discretionary authority to make a distribution of trust property outright and free of trust to a permissible beneficiary of the trust may well be the authority to distribute the property instead to...more