by Karen Stewart | May 30, 2018 | Estate Planning
The American Taxpayer Relief Act made permanent changes to the federal estate and gift tax rules. Here are the basics: The federal estate tax exemption is $11.18 million for estates of individuals who die in 2018 (up from $5.49 in 2017). A 40% tax rate applies to the...
by Karen Stewart | Apr 25, 2018 | Estate Planning
If A = B and B = C, then A = C. This is the “transitive property of equality” that we learned in our remedial algebra classes so long ago. Is there a transitive property of fiduciary duties? We know that the trustee owes duties of care to the trust beneficiaries. We...
by Karen Stewart | Apr 6, 2018 | Estate Planning
Without specific estate instructions concerning distribution of tangible personal assets, such as household furnishings, jewelry, artwork, china and silver, tools, collections etc., family members can be left guessing what a deceased person would want – or decide to...
by Karen Stewart | Mar 23, 2018 | Estate Planning
In the days after a person dies, some family members may decide to take matters into their own hands. These individuals may have a key to the home and decide they are going to take items they want. Before the Will is even read, furniture, jewelry, artwork and other...
by Karen Stewart | Feb 28, 2018 | Estate Planning
Often, people go to great lengths to create a suitable estate plan and then fail to keep track of the paperwork and particulars. The problem for many people is forgetting where their estate plan paperwork is located. Or, not communicating to their family where the...
