Once Removed Episode 18: The Reciprocal Trust Doctrine
The May 2025 Section 7520 rate for use with estate planning techniques such as CRTs, CLTs, QPRTs and GRATs is 5.00%, which is the same as the April 2025 Section 7520 rate...more
The April 2025 Section 7520 rate for use with estate planning techniques such as CRTs, CLTs, QPRTs and GRATs is 5.00%, which is 0.40% less than the March 2025 rate. The April applicable federal rate (“AFR”) for use with a...more
February 2025 Interest Rates for GRATs, Sales to Defective Grantor Trusts, Intra-Family Loans and Split Interest Charitable Trusts - The February applicable federal rate (“AFR”) for use with a sale to a defective grantor...more
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 provided major changes to the Internal Revenue Code, specifically doubling the federal estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax exemption (collectively, the exemption) from...more
A trust structure, commonly used for estate planning, can be problematic in certain civil law jurisdictions, such as those in many European countries. Recent acts enacted in Wyoming and New Hampshire allow for the...more
Although the IRS is now on high alert for wealthy individuals, new and existing planning opportunities are available, such as tax-free gifts and other advantageous planning. Wealthy individuals and families should take...more
June 2023 Interest Rates for GRATs, Sales to Defective Grantor Trusts, Intra-Family Loans and Split-Interest Charitable Trusts - The June Section 7520 rate for use in estate planning techniques such as CRTs, CLTs, QPRTs...more
Under federal tax law, there are significant differences between grantor and non-grantor trusts. Grantor trusts are treated as disregarded entities. In layman’s terms, this means that the grantor (i.e., the creator or the...more
Taxpayers have long utilized trust arrangements for the transfer of wealth to beneficiaries or for the protection of assets from creditors. Generally, there is nothing nefarious about these types of arrangements. Rather,...more
In the recent case of Heiting v. United States, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals denied the taxpayer’s claim-of-right deduction pursuant to Internal Revenue Code section 1341. The case stemmed from the taxpayer’s attempt...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
As many people are aware, Congress is considering changes to the federal tax code to support President Biden’s Build Back Better spending plan. As of this writing, on September 22, 2021, no bill has been enacted....more
Last week, the House Ways and Means Committee released proposed legislation affecting numerous transfer and income tax provisions of the Code. These changes, if enacted, will have a significant impact on estate planning and...more
“President Biden and Democrats in the Congress have been working on a $3.5 trillion spending and tax package, and the details are starting to be revealed. Indeed, on Sunday, September 12th, the House Ways and Means Committee...more
Now may be an opportune time to gift assets out of your estate, particularly through an estate planning technique known as the Grantor Retained Annuity Trust (“GRAT“)—a small silver lining of the alarming pandemic and down...more
December 2019 Interest Rates for GRATs, Sales to Defective Grantor Trusts, Intra-Family Loans and Split-Interest Charitable Trusts - The December Section 7520 rate for use with estate planning techniques such as CRTs,...more