Take-Away: We all know how important it is to name a beneficiary of an IRA. If there is no designated beneficiary then the IRA custodial agreement will usually provide a default beneficiary. If the default beneficiary under the IRA custodial agreement is the decedent’s estate, the pay-out period in which to empty the IRA is […]

Take-Away: Grantor trusts for income tax purposes cause the grantor/settlor of the irrevocable trust to pay the income taxes on the trust’s income. But the trust’s assets will not be included in the grantor’s estate for estate tax calculation purposes. Some of the benefits of a grantor trust are: (i) a transfer of assets between […]

Take-Away: This summer the IRS denied a charitable remainder trust’s application to tax-exempt status. While that sounds like a bad outcome, what is important to remember is that a charitable remainder trust’s tax incentive feature, the income tax deduction with regard to the charitable remainder interest, falls under a different section of the Tax Code, […]

Take-Away: A father had his parental rights terminated by a court for abuse and neglect. The father then died.  A state Supreme Court held that the daughter to whom his parental rights had been terminated could not inherit from her deceased father’s estate, as their relationship was terminated, in a sense,  ‘both ways.’ Welcome to […]

Take-Away: A recent Tax Court decision was won by the taxpayer who surprisingly argued that she did not own an IRA, consequently she could neither be taxed on distributions nor assessed a 10% penalty. Facts: The owner used her IRA to make a $40,000 loan to her father in 2005, in exchange for a promissory […]

Take-Away: The details of IRC 199A are now coming a bit more into focus, but it is still an extremely confusing income tax deduction to understand or calculate. It is even more challenging to provide guidance on the deduction for individuals who are owners of multiple businesses. Background: With the reduction in income tax rates […]

Take-Away: We can expect to spend a lot of time during the balance of 2018 counselling clients on the new IRC 199A pass-through business deduction, which permits some, but not all, taxpayers to deduct up to 20% of their qualified business income. It is possible (no guarantee) that a basic ‘rule-of-thumb’ can be used to […]

Take-Away: What follows is a short update on reported adopted and pending legislation from a few weeks ago. Principal Residence Exemption During Convalescence:  This Act [PA 133 of 2018] amends the General Property Act [MCL 211.7cc] to remove a requirement that a residence must be unoccupied in order for an individual who resides in a […]

Take-Away: The amounts that an heir or surviving spouse may claim under the Michigan Estates and Protected Individuals Code increase each year to reflect cost of living adjustments. Some of those increased amounts for 2018 are described below. Reviewing intestate shares, elective rights, and probate court allowances is often a helpful reminder that it is […]

Take-Away: The deductibility of an  investment advisory fee is impacted by the 2017 Tax Cut Act, not in a good way. Background: As a gross generalization, investment advisory expenses, along with tax preparation and other professional fees are/were treated as miscellaneous itemized deductions. Prior to 2018 a taxpayer’s miscellaneous itemized deductions were allowed but only […]