by Manish C. Bhatia | Jan 29, 2011 | News + Trends
Elizabeth Edwards, who passed away on December 7, 2010, left a Will which made a significant omission. The Will, signed on December 1, 2010, just days before her death, makes no mention of her estranged husband and former presidential candidate, John Edwards. John...
by Manish C. Bhatia | Jan 1, 2011 | News + Trends
With the new year, we have new legislation providing updated Estate, Gift and Generation Skipping Transfer Tax provisions affecting decedents dying between January 1, 2010, and December 31, 2012. Congress has finally given us a long-awaited answer to the question of...
by Manish C. Bhatia | Dec 1, 2010 | News + Trends
In order for a gift to qualify for the annual ($13,000) or lifetime ($1 million) Gift Tax exemptions, it must be a present interest gift. A present interest gift is one in which the beneficiary has an immediate, unrestricted right to the use, benefit, and enjoyment...
by Manish C. Bhatia | Dec 1, 2010 | News + Trends
One of the primary techniques used to reduce a person’s taxable estate is for him or her to make gifts during life to other individuals, usually children or grandchildren, using the annual gift tax exemption ($14,000 in 2014). An individual can make a gift of up to...
by Manish C. Bhatia | Nov 1, 2010 | News + Trends
As reported in Newsletter #1, in John W. Fisher and Janice B. Fisher v. United States of America (March 11, 2010), the U.S. District Court of Indiana held that the interests in Good Harbor Partners, LLC, the Fisher’s limited liability company, gifted by the Fishers to...
by Manish C. Bhatia | Nov 1, 2010 | News + Trends
A recent decision emphasizes the importance of recognizing the named beneficiaries of your accounts and policies and updating them as necessary in a timely manner. In Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co. v. Rafi (October 19, 2010), a father had purchased two life...
