A Trust mill in Indiana was found to have engaged in the "unauthorized practice of law" -largely because of the small role lawyers had in the entire process. The plans were sold and pre-set my unlicensed salespeople. There was a "panel" of lawyers the company utilized to review the matter. However, what moved the court [...]
It appears plain that Congress will do nothing on the Estate Tax this year. This means the Bush tax cuts are going ahead and the estate tax will be abolished for 2010. Its possible there will be a temporary or permanant fix sometime in 2010. The prospect that any change will be retroactive is also possible. [...]
Here's the "problem" in need of some sort of a solution. The federal government has an estate tax. Among the features of the estate tax is an "applicable exclusion amount." In 2009, this is $3,500,000. Generally speaking, the property of the deceased spouse transfers to the surviving spouse. The surviving spouse has only one "applicable [...]