What Happens:

Kate Holbrook discovers that her chances of becoming pregnant are drastically reduced. Kate considers adoption, but a misguided social worker convinces her that her chances of being approved as an adoptive parent are limited because she is not married.

Kate learns of the Chaffee Bicknell surrogacy center and is connected with Angie Ostrowski,

New York has an “estate tax cliff,” which can result in heirs paying New York estate tax at a rate exceeding 100%.

The current per-person NYS estate tax exemption is $6.94 million, which is the amount you can leave to your heirs at your death without paying NYS estate tax. If your taxable estate, however,

In 1992, New York became the first state in the nation to enact a decanting statute, namely, New York Estates, Powers and Trusts Law (EPTL) 10-6.6. The statute subsequently was modified several times. The 2011 amendment was notable because it greatly liberalized the statute’s application. Today, New York’s decanting statute is a tool frequently used

As we’ve previously discussed, portability is an important feature of an estate plan. Portability allows the surviving spouse to die to “save” any of their predeceased spouse’s unused federal estate and gift exemption amount. A federal tax of 40% is imposed on each dollar that exceeds a decedent’s federal estate and gift exemption amount.

The

You may have heard of Spousal Lifetime Access Trusts (SLATS) lately, especially if you have been thinking about using your federal estate and gift tax exemption before the current higher exemption amount of $13.61 million is automatically reduced to about $7 million on January 1, 2026, assuming Congress takes no action. (See my column from last

On Dec. 29, 2023, the Office of the Chief Counsel (the Chief Counsel) of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released Chief Counsel Advice Memorandum 202352018 (the CCAM).

Although some have commented on the CCAM’s impact on trust modifications, a further question is what impact, if any, will the CCAM have on trust decantings in New

When we think about making plans to secure our future, generally the discussions revolve around education, career, family, and finances. Creating a comprehensive estate plan, including effective advanced directives, can elude even the most organized and diligent people. A survey by Caring.com noted that 1 in 5 people who died during the 2020 pandemic did

The current combined federal estate and gift tax exemption amount of $13.61 million per person ($27.22 million per married couple) is scheduled to “sunset” automatically on January 1, 2026, and revert to $5 million indexed for inflation (guesstimated at $7 million), unless Congress takes action. This exemption amount applies to the total taxable gifts made

Many of us would like our children to inherit our home once we are gone. More than a few of us think it makes sense to give our home to our children while we are still living. That is not a good idea! Here’s why.

Loss of Step-Up in Basis

Gifting your home to someone

As of November 2023, having a valid Health Care Proxy became easier for New Yorkers. A Health Care Proxy allows a competent adult to appoint an agent to make health care choices for them if they lose the ability to make those decisions for themselves. Two adults who are not appointed in the document must