Riverside estate planning and tax law attorney, Dennis M. Sandoval, addressed The American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys at their 20th Annual Spring Conference in Philadelphia this weekend. On Saturday, Dennis spoke on issues relating to trust funding and trust administration. On Sunday, he spoke on naming a trust as beneficiary of retirement assets, such as IRAs and 401Ks, in order to maximize "stretch-out" and long-term deferral on income taxation of inherited IRAs. Call 951-888-1460 … [Read more...] about Dennis Sandoval Speaks at American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys Conference
Permanent Tax Cuts: It All Depends on What the Definition of “Permanent” Is
On January 2, 2013 Congress extended a majority of the “Bush Tax Cuts.” As part of that bill, the estate tax applicable exclusion amount (the amount that can be passed free of estate tax) was set at $5.25 million and indexed for inflation. This meant that a married couple, with proper planning, could pass, at death or during lifetime, as much as $10.5 million free from gift or estate tax. The gift and estate tax rate was increased to 40% from 35% in 2011 and 2012. The bill indicated this change … [Read more...] about Permanent Tax Cuts: It All Depends on What the Definition of “Permanent” Is
White House Unveils $100 Million Brain Mapping Project
On April 2, 2013, President Obama unveiled plans for the federal government to invest $100 million in human brain mapping. The goal is that the research will unlock the secret of mental conditions from dementia to epilepsy. This project will be known as the BRAIN initiative – Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies. The funding for BRAIN is expected to be delivered in 2014. Private institutions will be encouraged to work alongside government agencies in the research. … [Read more...] about White House Unveils $100 Million Brain Mapping Project
Guardianship Provisions are an Essential Part of a Comprehensive Estate Plan
Recent celebrity cases illustrate the importantance of naming a guardian for minor children and having an updated estate plan in place. Anna Nicole Smith Estate Tragedy When Playboy playmate Anna Nicole Smith died of a drug overdose, her Will contained a provision leaving everything to her son Daniel, who had died the year before, also of a drug overdose. The Will contained an unusual provision disinheriting all other children, including future born children. Days before the death of her … [Read more...] about Guardianship Provisions are an Essential Part of a Comprehensive Estate Plan
Congress Pulls Taxpayers Up From the Abyss
In case you missed it, we fell off the fiscal cliff on January 1, 2013. However, less than twenty-four hours later, Congress passed the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2013 (“ATRA”), reinstituting the Bush income tax cuts for most Americans and “permanently” fixing the estate tax. … [Read more...] about Congress Pulls Taxpayers Up From the Abyss
