Take-Away: While the owner of a foreign bank account is supposed to disclose the existence of that account, some owners play the ‘audit game’ and fail to report their account(s) or they think the law does not apply to them. That failure to disclose a foreign financial account does not disappear just because the account […]

Take-Away: An effort is underway to amend Michigan’s version of the Uniform Voidable Transaction Act in order to preserve the effectiveness of the Michigan Qualified Dispositions in Trust Act, i.e. Michigan’s version of a self-settled domestic asset protection trust, or DAPT. Background: Much of estate planning involves the efficient transfer of assets. One obvious transfer […]

Take-Away: Michigan has yet to update its laws to address assisted reproductive technology (AR), although a bill on this topic has been languishing in Lansing for several years now. Background: With advances in medical technology, a child can be conceived with stored genetic material after the death of one or both genetic parents. Intestacy statutes, […]

Take-Away: Using retirement assets to satisfy an individual’s philanthopic objectives can be done in a tax-efficient way manner. Especially with a qualified charitable distribution (QCD.) However, you just have to know the rules. Background: It is that time in the calendar year when individuals start to think about charitable giving, and/or reducing their income tax […]

Take-Away: A recent Michigan Court of Appeals decision acts as a good reminder of how valuable a trust can be to prevent a commingling of a gift or an inheritance to avoid a family business falling into an ex-spouse’s hands. Had premarital stock owned by the husband, received from his father’s trust, continued to be […]

Take-Away: Despite a bill that was proposed a few years ago, we are still waiting for Michigan’s Legislature to adopt a bill that permits spouses to hold tenants-by-the-entireties property in their joint trust. However, it seems some courts still are willing to provide entireties creditor protection to entireties assets held in trust. Background: In March […]

Take-Away: Each August the IRS identifies the inflation factor for the next year’s transfer tax exemptions. A rough estimate of those 2022 amounts are now able to be calculated using that inflation factor. Background: Every August the IRA identifies the ‘Chained Consumer Price Index’ (C-CPL) which is then used to calculate the federal transfer tax exemptions […]

Take-Away: IRC 2703 is one of the special valuation rules that is used for rejecting values in transactions among family members that claim valuation discounts. In applying the rule, the concepts of  agreement and family are broadly construed, but there is some help with a statutory safe harbor and exception. Background:  As we enter a […]

Take-Away: Rolling funds from a qualified plan to an IRA on termination from employment, and then taking a distribution from the IRA prior to age 59 ½, will cause the IRA owner to incur the 10% additional tax in addition to the income tax on the distribution. Background: The Tax Code imposes a 10% additional […]

Take-Away: A power of appointment can be exceptionally helpful to change the ultimate disposition of property under a Will or Trust to address changes in the law or changes in a beneficiary’s circumstances. However, there are always traps to be wary of when exercising a power of appointment. Background: A power of appointment is not […]