Courtesy of WealthCounsel, LLC Ever since 2001, the keyword for estate tax planning has been “flexibility.” Thanks to a 10-year phased-in temporary estate tax repeal, followed by a massive economic recession, and then followed by the Tax Act of 2012 that effectively repealed estate tax for all but 0.2% of the population in the United States, estate planning has been anything but predictable or boring. Fast forward to 2017, estate planners are left wondering… “What will the Republican-controlled Senate and the Donald Trump Presidency bring in terms of tax changes and how will that impact the estate planning industry?” Estate…
Top Five Reasons Not to Overreact to the Possibility of Estate Tax Repeal
Download Printable Article By Steven J. Oshins Esq., AEP (Distinguished) At the time of this writing, President-elect Donald Trump is preparing to take office. This marks a dramatic change in political philosophies as we will soon have a Republican president, a Republican-controlled House and a Republican-controlled Senate. Thus, there is a likelihood that we will see and hear about drastic changes in the tax code. Does this mean that the estate tax will be abolished? Does this spell the end to advanced estate tax planning? If you listen to many estate planners or read many of the media articles, it…
Hard to Figure: The Critical Importance of Current Continuous Estate Planning
By Jonathan G. Blattmachr, Esq. & Martin M. Shenkman, CPA/PFS, AEP (Distinguished), MBA, J.D. Reproduced with Permission by and Courtesy of Leimberg Information Services, Inc. (LISI). For information about how to subscribe to LISI, click here. “The ‘politics’ of the estate tax have been unstable for a long time. That certainly is the case now. Regardless of whether the estate tax is repealed next year, it might well return by reason of a sunset provision or a change in control of the White House and Congress. Unless a client is certain to die while the estate tax is not…
The Power of Just a Little Bit
Download Printable Article By Jason Oshins, Financial Advisor, MBA As the calendar changes from December to January, we take stock of ourselves – our health, our habits, our finances. We then formulate garish, outrageous resolutions, oftentimes setting ourselves up for failure. We commit to cutting out all fat, never eating ice cream, waking up four days a week to work out, running five miles the other three days, learning how to play guitar, and joining a book club. According to the messages all around us, we must be “all in”, after all. Invariably, when January turns to February, we eat…
What a Donald Trump Presidency Means for Estate Planning
By Jeramie Fortenberry, J.D., LL.M. (Taxation) Executive Editor & Legal Education Faculty WealthCounsel, LLC In a surprising upset, Republican candidate Donald J. Trump defeated Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton on November 8, 2016, to become President-elect of the United States. Republicans maintained a majority in the Senate and the House of Representatives, creating alignment between the White House and Congress and paving the way for Republican-backed legislation. Given the emphasis on taxes by both the incumbent Republican leadership and President-elect Trump, significant tax reform is more likely now than it has been in recent years. Trump’s tax plan is largely aligned…
Trump Wins: A Brave New World for Estate Planners
By Jonathan G. Blattmachr, Esq. & Martin M. Shenkman, CPA/PFS, AEP (Distinguished), MBA, J.D. Reproduced with Permission by and Courtesy of Leimberg Information Services, Inc. (LISI). For information about how to subscribe to LISI, click here. “The election of Donald J. Trump as our 45th President was largely unexpected. It is difficult to forecast what that will mean during his term, and, perhaps, his second term. However, he has proposed wide-ranging changes to the nation’s tax system which will affect virtually all Americans and their advisors. Estate planners in particular face a dramatic impact on their practices.” EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The…
Investment Opportunities Involving Private Foundations And Pension Plans
Download Printable Article By Bruce Givner, Esq. Introduction. Private foundations (a particular type of which are charitable remainder trusts) and pension plans are attractive structures since they both involve (i) tax deductible contributions and (ii) no tax on the funds accumulating in them. Despite their obvious advantages, we find that clients shy away from adopting them due to the tax laws’ restrictions on what they can do with the funds invested in the two structures. Let’s first discuss the significant advantages of each. Then we’ll discuss the restrictions and at least hint at the ways to exploit those limits. Private…
The Viability of Delaware Dynasty Trusts After the Kloiber Case
Download Printable Article By Steven J. Oshins Esq., AEP (Distinguished) It’s over! One of the highest-profile cases in the history of the estate planning industry, and one that was being monitored by estate planners all over the United States, has been settled. Delaware trust promoters had been holding their breath awaiting the result of the case that became the posterchild for jurisdiction selection and the importance of avoiding the use of a health, education, maintenance and support trust in a jurisdiction like Delaware that allows a divorcing spouse of a beneficiary to penetrate the trust. No estate planning professional can…
FLASH FRIDAY PROMOTION — DECEMBER 2016
OUR FLASH FRIDAY PROMOTION IS OVER!
Pre-Election Estate Tax Proposals: Clinton vs. Trump
By Martin M. Shenkman, CPA, MBA, PFS, AEP, JD Are major estate tax law changes in the offing? Perhaps, but my Ouija board smoked when I asked the question. So, barring that type of guidance, what assurance can there be? The election hasn’t occurred yet, so there’s certainly no way to know which candidate will win. Party platforms haven’t even been finalized. And, there’s no assurance that the winner’s proposals will be enacted. In spite of the above, practitioners should put all clients involved in active planning on notice of Clinton and Trump’s proposals because they’re so dramatically different. No…