The New York Court of Appeals has broken new ground. It has held that an attorney may be held liable for damages resulting from negligent representation in estate tax planning that causes enhanced estate tax liability. The court held that a personal representative of an estate may maintain a legal malpractice claim for such pecuniary losses
Kafkaesque – the Fight over Kafka’s Writings
Aron Heller writes for the AP:
"JERUSALEM – It seems almost Kafkaesque: Ten safety deposit boxes of never-published writings by Franz Kafka, their exact contents unknown, are trapped in courts and bureaucracy, much like one of the nightmarish visions created by the author himself.
The papers, retrieved from bank vaults where they have
No Limited Liability for Florida Single-Member LLC
Juan Altunez writes in his Florida Probate and Trust Litigation Blog about this recient Florida Supreme Court case: Olmstead v. F.T.C., — So.3d —-, 2010 WL 2518106 (Fla. Jun 24, 2010). Read his execllent summary and anlaysis of the case here.
An excerpt from the post:
"For those of you interested in understanding the charging-order
The Turbo Tax Defense
Remember when Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner ran into trouble because he hadn’t paid his self-employment tax? There was quite a political stir because it meant a tax-evader would be in charge of the IRS.
Geithner had worked at the International Monetary Fund from 2001 to 2004. During those four years, he paid no social security
Legacy for One Billionaire: Death, but No Taxes
David Kocieniewski reports for The New York Times: (click here for full article)
"A Texas pipeline tycoon who died two months ago may become the first American billionaire allowed to pass his fortune to his children and grandchildren tax-free, The New York Times’s David Kocieniewski reports.
Dan L. Duncan, a soft-spoken farm boy who
Please Vote – Every Day until June 30
One of my favorite charities, Lancaster Yeshiva Center, is competing in the Pepsi Refresh Project – they need votes!
Please vote for their idea to renovate an uninhabitable city home while training vocational students:
ALTERNATIVE RESOLUTION of TRUSTS and ESTATES DISPUTES
"Discourage litigation. Persuade your neighbors to compromise whenever you can. Point out to them how the nominal winner is often a real loser – in fees, expenses and waste of time." ——–Abraham Lincoln
Lincoln’s words are doubly true today. Our society is beset with litigation – and all too often, there are no
Senators Bicker Over Estate Tax Fix
"Nero Fiddled While Rome Burned"
And now – what on earth are they thinking in Congress? They really want to create more litigation, don’t they?
See this excellent update at The Trust Advisor Blog: Bickering Senators Delay Estate Tax Fix.
Virtual Representation
Today I listened to the ALI-ABA Webcast "Virtual Representation in Trust and Estate Dispute Resolution: Opportunities and Risks", You can check at the ALI-ABA website to find out when the online version will be available – i highly recommend it. This concept will be increasingly valuable in the resolution of trust and estates disputes. The ALI-ABA
What happens if the sun sets?
Here we are four months into 2010 and there has been no change to the gift and estate tax law. Most observers were surprised that a patch to continue the law as it stood in 2009 was not enacted. Now there is talk of such a patch or even a new law that would accomplish