Take-Away: In Michigan a trust protector, called a trust director, serves in a fiduciary capacity. It is possible that the trust director’s amendment to a trust might, despite those fiduciary duties,  be voidable due to undue influence. Background: The Michigan Bar’s Probate and Estate Planning Section is currently studying an update in the definition and […]

Take-Away: We expect the House’s Ways and Means Committee to release its tax law proposals sometime next week. While most taxpayers are looking for a potential increase in the long-term capital gains tax rate, there may be other tax increases in the proposed bill in Congress’ endless search for revenues. Background: Earlier this year the […]

Take-Away: Wills and Trusts often refer to per stirpes to describe a class gift to descendants. As a surprise to many, the concept of per stirpes is not the same under the governing laws of each state, which can lead to much confusion when the Will or Trust is construed with regard to the members of […]

Take-Away: Each state has its own rules when it comes to the enforcement of a ‘no-contest’ clause. Michigan follows the general rule that a ‘no-contest’ provision will be enforced unless the challenger possesses probable cause to institute the challenge. Other states follow different rules, some more stringent, others more lenient. A state like Florida refuses […]

Take-Away: There are rumors coming out of Washington D.C. that one of the possible sources of new revenue  as part of the upcoming 2022 budget that Congress is about to debate is a forced lump sum distribution if a retirement account balance exceeds a specific dollar amount. Rumor: The rumor is that if an IRA or […]

Take-Away: Real estate can be held in an IRA, but navigating  the Tax Code’s self-dealing rules almost make it not worth the effort  to hold real estate in an IRA. Background: Over the weekend I was talking with a fellow who plans to purchase a Traverse City downtown condo using his IRA. Suffice it to […]

Take-Away: Today the House Ways and Means Committee released its preliminary list of proposed tax law changes. Several were not a surprise, but a couple were. House Ways and Means Committee List of Changes to Tax Laws: Again, the Committee’s list is pretty sketchy at this time, but other committees in the House will now […]

Take-Away: There are rumors coming out of Washington D.C. that one of the possible sources of new revenue  as part of the upcoming 2022 budget that Congress is about to debate is a forced lump sum distribution if a retirement account balance exceeds a specific dollar amount. Rumor: The rumor is that if an IRA or […]

Take-Away: Both good news, a clarification, and bad news with regard to effective dates, should the Ways and Means Committee proposals become law as part of the upcoming budget reconciliation process. Good News First: In the first summary, I noted that the effective date for the reduction in the estate and gift tax applicable exemption amount […]

Take-Away: With the looming possibility of a sudden drop in an individual’s applicable exemption amount, coupled with a sudden increase in the federal estate tax rate, wealthy individuals should explore ways to reduce their taxable estates while the current transfer tax exemption exists through lifetime gifts. One easy way to reduce a grandparent’s taxable estate […]