IRS Issues Ruling on Tax Filings for Same Sex Couples
Yesterday the Internal Revenue Service issued an important ruling in the wake of the Windsor case in which the Supreme Court ruled that the Defense of Marriage Act was unconstitutional. Specifically the IRS stated that it will recognize all same sex marriages regardless of where the couple was married. The Supreme Court did not specifically address what would […]
Affect of United States v. Windsor on NJ Same Sex Couples
After scrutinizing the United States v. Windsor decision yesterday a little more thoroughly, it occurs to me that same sex couples in New Jersey are still a state of limbo. It should be noted that the Supreme Court relied on the fact that the couple in the Windsor case not only were legally married in Canada, but […]
A Comparison of the Pennsylvania and New Jersey Inheritance Tax Laws
Some states, including New Jersey and Pennsylvania, have an inheritance tax. Other states, like Florida and New York, do not have an inheritance tax. An inheritance tax is a tax on the person who receives money from a decedent. The inheritance tax rate itself depends upon the relationship between the person receiving the money and […]
New Jersey Estate Tax
New Jersey has many different types of taxes, including two different taxes on death: the NJ Estate Tax and the NJ inheritance tax. The New Jersey estate tax is a tax on transfers at death and certain transfers in contemplation of death. Transfers to charities, a surviving spouse or a surviving Civil Union partner are exempt […]
Beware the Compromise Tax
One area of estate administration that often gets overlooked on tax returns is the compromise tax. When a decedent transfers assets that are subject to a contingency or are otherwise difficult to value, the taxing jurisdiction and the estate must compromise on the tax due. There are a variety of reasons an asset may be […]
Helpful Estate Planning Hints for Divorce Attorneys
A. Have your client do pre-divorce estate planning(especially if the split is partially the result of financial matters) 1, Most clients are not aware that if they die during the pendency of their divorce that their soon to be ex may still inherit everything. This can be particularly important if it is likely that the […]