Many people leave their assets to their surviving spouse, then equally to their children. What happens when a person leaves unequal shares to his or her children? Is there a way to do this without causing a knock-down-drag-out fight between the kids?
Mothers Day may be over, but you should still consider giving a gift in 2012
The next seven months provide tax-free gifting opportunities for many that may never be available again. The 2012 federal estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer tax rates are the lowest (35 percent), and the corresponding exemption amounts the highest ($5,120,000), they have ever been. And, unless Congress takes action, these rates are scheduled to increase (to 55 percent, or 60 percent for estates over $10,000,000), and the exemptions to decrease (to $1,000,000, except that the exemption for the generation-skipping transfer tax will be adjusted for inflation), effective January 1, 2013. Given that no one knows with certainty what Congress will do, if anything, individuals should explore and take advantage of the current tax-free gifting opportunities available to them, and quickly.
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Borrowers: Foreclosed, Struggling or Underwater? You May be Eligible for Portion of $26 Billion Settlement
In February 2012, 49 states, including Michigan, reached a $26 Billion settlement with five of the nation’s largest mortgage lenders over foreclosure practices previously utilized by these financial institutions. Earlier this month, the settlement was approved by a federal judge. The settlement is designed to provide restitution to borrowers who were improperly foreclosed on between 2008 and 2011. In addition, borrowers who are currently struggling with their mortgage payments or have homes that are underwater may be eligible to receive assistance from the settlement fund. Ultimately, the settlement may provide relief and assistance to countless borrowers struggling with our current housing crisis.
2012: Health Care Reform Provisions Effective Yet This Year
While we are all eagerly awaiting whether the United States Supreme Court will be rendering a decision on the individual mandate, and if so, what the decision will be, we have to be mindful of a number of compliance measures becoming effective yet this year. Please ensure you are properly prepared to handle these issues. Even if the individual mandate is stricken, the rest of the law may remain intact.
With that in mind, we are providing a general overview of some of this year’s legal requirements:
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Avoid Pinning Your Name to a Copyright or Trademark Infringement Lawsuit
Pinterest has quickly developed as the latest innovation in the social media evolution. Pinterest is a virtual pinboard that allows a user to organize and share images with other Pinterest users. A user “pins” an image to his or her pinboard by either uploading an image from his or her computer or using the “Pin It” button integrated into his or her web browser after downloading the Pinterest program. Each pin added using the Pin It button links back to the website where the image was pinned from. Images that have been pinned to a pinboard can be re-pinned by other users that desire to add the image to their own pinboard.
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U.S. Supreme Court to Decide Constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) became law on March 23, 2010. The ACA created sweeping reform to the health care system in the United States. The driving principles behind the ACA are to provide affordable health care to all Americans, reduce the growth of the health care costs and improve the health of our communities. While most agree that the underlying principles of the ACA are fundamentally sound, not everyone agrees with the methodology used to achieve these goals.
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Constitutional Rights of Free Speech and Petition for Redress of Grievances
The United States and Michigan constitutions guarantee our rights to free speech and to petition the government for the redress of grievances. During the past week, we have seen graphic and contrasting examples of these rights in action. The federal and state constitutions protect both examples equally. However, one would hope to hear less of the local speech and would also hope that the national example would have a positive influence upon the nature of political discourse in this country and state.
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Type of Business Entity: Corporation versus LLC
As a business and tax attorney I am frequently asked by clients whether a corporation or an LLC is a better entity for their new business. My response is that each entity has certain advantages and a review of the intended use for the new business and the goals of the owners/investors must be made before that question can be definitively answered.
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Special Estate Planning Opportunity For Estate Tax Portability Election.
The IRS issued a news release on February 18, 2012 announcing the Extension of Deadline for Certain Qualifying Estates to File an Estate Tax Return to Make a Portability Election Benefiting Surviving Spouses.
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Unclaimed Property – Is it Yours?
You might be surprised to find your name on the list of individuals and businesses with items of unclaimed property being held by the State of Michigan. Types of property being held are varied but include things such as undeliverable refund, dividend or payroll checks, life insurance proceeds, and even forgotten bank balances. Recently, Michigan has pushed financial institutions and other companies to turn over unclaimed property to the State. This push has resulted in more and more people showing up on the lists of unclaimed property. To find out if Michigan has any of your property, go to www.michigan.gov/treasury and click on Unclaimed Property.