The federal estate and gift tax exemption (known as the “basic exclusion amount”) has increased to $11.7 million per taxpayer in 2021. The exemption in 2020 had been $11.58 million. The increase means that in 2021, an individual can make gifts during life or at death totaling $11.7 million without…
We are proud to announce 11 of our attorneys have been named to the 2021 Best Lawyers® list, two of which were named “Lawyer of the Year.” This recognition in The Best Lawyers in America© 2021, identifies each for their leading legal talent in their corresponding practice areas. The following…
The COVID-19 crisis, and its attendant rules of social distancing, face masks, etc. have presented new challenges to estate planning attorneys in the realm of document executions. How are we advising clients who wish to sign their estate planning documents during this pandemic? The usual participants when we meet with…
Federal Law. On April 9, 2020, the IRS issued Notice 2020-23, amplifying earlier Notices 2020-18 and 2020-20. Notice 2020-23 indicates that because of the COVID-19 emergency, the due dates for filing federal tax returns and payment of taxes due on or after April 1, 2020 and before July 15, 2020…
On December 20, 2019, President Trump signed into law the SECURE (Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement) Act (the “Act”), which significantly affects the law regarding taxable retirement accounts such as traditional IRAs and 401(k) plans.[1] Benefits of the Act. The following are among the pertinent beneficial provisions of…
When a person signs a will (or a will coupled with a revocable trust) in order to set forth a plan for the distribution of his or her estate following death, he or she often believes the estate plan is complete. But if the person has failed to carefully consider…
The New Jersey estate tax was repealed effective January 1, 2018. Coupled with the significant increase in the federal estate and gift tax exemption ($11.4 million in 2019), the repeal has reduced the need for transfer tax planning by many New Jersey residents. However, because the New Jersey inheritance tax…
In view of the repeal of the New Jersey estate tax as of January 1, 2018, as well as the recent significant increases in the federal estate, gift and generation-skipping transfer tax (“GST”) exemptions to $11,180,000 per person, also effective January 1, 2018, many clients should review their estate plans.…
An advance directive for health care (“Advance Directive”) is a legal document that expresses an individual’s wishes regarding end of life medical treatment, and can include a designation of another person as his or her health care representative. In contrast, a POLST, Practitioner Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment, is a health…
President Trump signed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Act”) on December 22, 2017. The Act makes significant changes to the Internal Revenue Code, covering a broad range of income, corporate, and estate taxes. Most of the changes to the Code are effective as of January 1, 2018. Because…