Everything You Need to Know About Beneficiary Designations
If you are in the process of long-term estate planning or updating an existing estate plan, the process for passing assets and accounts to your heirs is about to become much more difficult and expensive. Presently, each...more
Because so many things can change with time, we recommend that our clients review their estate plans every three to five years and update plans as needed. These periodic reviews help to ensure that your affairs are in order,...more
Earlier this week the White House released its Fiscal Year 2025 Budget. Of course, the federal government has not yet adopted a budget for the Fiscal Year 2024 even as we approach that year’s halfway mark. But I digress. The...more
Revocable trusts - Don’t forget to fund the trust throughout your lifetime - Many estate plans are built around revocable trusts (sometimes called “living trusts”). These trusts allow you to 1) avoid the time, expense...more
There are numerous benefits of using trusts in your estate plan. For example, trusts can maximize the tax code provisions shielding assets from gift and estate taxes, protect assets from the clutches of creditors or...more
When we think about making plans to secure our future, generally the discussions revolve around education, career, family, and finances. Creating a comprehensive estate plan, including effective advanced directives, can elude...more
Preparing for 2026 - Four ways to build flexibility into your estate plan - January 1, 2026, is a significant date for estate planning. On that day, the federal gift and estate tax exemption amount set by the Tax Cuts...more
Oh, the things you hear at cocktail parties: “Everyone should have a revocable trust,” “It’s easy to change your residence to Florida for tax purposes – just count days and get a Florida license,” “Make all your trusts...more
The Key Person- The closely held corporation is often a fragile creature. Too often, its continued success and well-being are overly dependent upon the continued involvement of one individual – namely, the founder and...more
What happened: Fester Addams, a wealthy bachelor, wants nothing more than to find a great love like that between his older brother Gomez and his wife Morticia, but he is too trusting and easily mislead. Following the...more
During COVID, many of us are balancing working remotely while caring for our children. This autumn, most of our children are returning to part-time or all remote school. We are using our residences as a home, office, and...more
As estate planners, we have seen it all over the years. What we have learned is that people make some common mistakes. Whether due to procrastination, lack of follow through, or ignoring their own mortality! This article...more
In the most recent installment of the McGuireWoods Fiduciary Advisory Services annual multipart series on recent fiduciary cases, developments in the law concerning various topics are examined through the following: - ...more
In This Issue: - Who needs an estate plan? Quick answer: Everyone - NINGs, DINGs and WINGs: Understanding the tax angles of self-settled trusts - Securities laws can derail your estate plan - ESTATE PLANNING...more
I’m writing this in Wilmington, North Carolina at a time when many in this area still are struggling after Hurricane Florence. The weekend before the storm was bright and sunny. I would have rather gone to the beach, but...more
In the most recent installment of the McGuireWoods Fiduciary Advisory Services annual multipart series on recent fiduciary cases, developments in the law concerning various topics are examined through the following: - In re...more
The newly enacted U.S. tax law makes significant changes to provisions of the Internal Revenue Code affecting high net worth individuals, their investment entities and family offices. These changes are likely to spur gift...more
For those in the middle of a divorce, the last thing on their mind is a review of their estate plan. However, a major life change, such as a divorce, is a critical time to update an estate plan so that wishes are carried out...more
In 2016, we continued to experience a period of relative stability in our federal transfer tax system and have been able to plan without expecting imminent significant changes to the system. Under the American Taxpayer Relief...more
September Interest Rates for GRATs, Sales to Defective Grantor Trusts, Intra-Family Loans and Split Interest Charitable Trusts - The September § 7520 rate for use with estate planning techniques such as CRTs, CLTs, QPRTs...more
In re Estate of House, 2014 Wash. App. LEXIS 3006 (Wash. Ct. App. 2014) - A release waiving any and all claims that the parties may have or may acquire, bars recovery for unknown claims existing at the time the release...more
In your experience, what’s the most costly mistake people make when preparing estate plans, and what can they do to fix them? That’s the question we recently put to attorneys writing on JD Supra....more