Here are some recent reports of estate planning battles, mistakes and funerals… Martin Luther King Jr.’s children are fighting over Mr. King’s Bible and Noble Peace Price. The children have been battling each other often since their mother, Coretta Scott King, died in 2006. One of the contributing factors to the family disputes is the […]
We try to encourage people to not only plan for the transfer of their personal assets but also to plan for the transfer of their businesses – either in life or at death. Buy-Sell Agreements are beneficial documents when drafting a succession plan for a business. It is however important to ensure that the buy-sell […]
Gifts of real estate to religious bodies are rare, but frequently the donee is mis-identified. Many churches are known by abbreviated versions of their full name, e.g., “St. Jude’s Catholic Church” is actually “The Church of Saint Jude of the Lake, Mahtomedi, Minnesota.” Many times the beneficiary is unaware of an intended gift, and has […]
Some estates may now be able to obtain an automatic extension of time to make the election to claim the estate tax portability exclusion. The IRS announced a procedure under which estates of decedents dying before January 1, 2014, that fall below the dollar threshold for having to file an estate tax return, yet want to elect […]
Not surprisingly, since most of us here at Epilawg are licensed to practice law only in Minnesota, we generally write about most topics from a Minnesota law point of view. Oftentimes, though, many laws having to do with estate planning tend to be similar among the states, with deviations here and there, which is why […]
In the past few weeks, there have been two stories that have caught our attention regarding the issue of incapacity and the need for advanced health care directives. The first news story unfortunately involved a minor child, who had been declared brain-dead by her doctors following complications from tonsil surgery. Her parents however wished to […]
I recently mentioned some issues to consider before transferring certain assets, primarily with regards to the MN estate and gift taxes. While we want you to be cautious before making any transfers, we do want to ensure individuals are aware that there are certain transfers that are excluded from being taxable gifts under Minnesota law. […]
Yup – there is a new tax in town for 2013 and it can add up quick. You can get hit in two ways: (1) additional Medicare payroll tax and/or (2) new Medicare contribution tax on unearned income. Let’s take a look at the taxes individually.
We’re big fans of Downton Abbey (as is the rest of the world). Previously, we have covered the inheritance lessons learned during the first season of Downtown Abbey. This past Sunday evening, Season 4 premiered on PBS. The framework of the episode centered around an estate planning issue: what makes for a valid Will? I […]
There are many parts to your financial life which may require you work with multiple professionals from different disciplines. Two of the most important professionals you should have on your team are a Financial Planner and an Estate Planning Attorney. Each of these professionals should have an understanding of what the other is doing. Some […]
Well, it’s that time of the year again. And by that I mean that its tax planning season! I don’t know about you, but I get pretty pumped about it. This year has been fun for our firm. The fun factor increase is mostly a result of our clients seeing stronger results in 2013 than […]