Recent Articles

Inherited IRAs protected

Sean Fosmire
March 30, 2011 14:57

In March 2010, a bankruptcy court in the Eastern District of Texas ruled that an inherited IRA did not enjoy the same protection from a creditor's claims that a standard IRA did, under 11 U.S.C. § 522(d)(12). That ruling has now been reversed on appeal by the district court. Chilton v. Moser,...

The Tax Reform Act of 2010

Tara Velting
March 10, 2011 15:33

On December 18, 2010, President Obama signed the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Re-authorization and Job Creation Act of 2010 (TRA 2010). A few of the key provisions are summarized here below. For individuals, income tax rates applicable in 2010 are extended for 2011 and 2012. Current rates...

New proposal: tax retirees

Sean Fosmire
February 26, 2011 17:32

One of the proposals made by Gov. Rick Snyder to address Michigan’s financial crisis is to impose the state’s 4.6% income tax on benefits paid from pensions and IRAs. Under current law, those benefits are not subject to tax at the state level, although they are taxed by the Federal...

Idea for reform: dates for retirement accounts

Sean Fosmire
January 27, 2011 15:17

On January 18, 2011, President Obama signed an Executive Order directing Federal agencies to update and streamline their regulations. Cass Sunstein, administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, is to be responsible for coordinating this effort. An idea for the IRS, if the...

WSJ on Medicare changes in 2011

Sean Fosmire
January 03, 2011 15:20

The Wall Street Journal reports today on the updates to Medicare coverage taking effect in 2011:  Medicare recipients who fall into a prescription-drug coverage gap known as the "doughnut hole" may reap the biggest windfall of the law in 2011. Enrollees whose total drug costs for the year...

House Passes Tax & Jobless Package

Tara Velting
December 17, 2010 14:53

With surprising speed, the House voted 277-148 to pass this package less than 24 hours after the Senate passed the bill, 81-19.  The plan includes an estate tax that would allow the first $10 million of a married couple's estate to pass to heirs without being taxed.  Despite strong...

New law in Oklahoma addresses control of "virtual" assets

Suzy Fanning
December 15, 2010 00:11

In a recent post on this blog, my colleague, Sean Fosmire, addressed the timely issue of management of online assets by appointment of a tech executer.  States are also beginning to take notice of the sheer amount amount of online information left by people when they...

The Tech Executor

Sean Fosmire
December 09, 2010 18:33

Naming an attorney or other qualified person as "tech executor" may be a very helpful way for an estate or trustee to manage electronic assets that a decedent had developed during his lifetime. Attorneys representing published authors are familiar with the concept of the "literary executor", a...

Five million dollars

Sean Fosmire
December 08, 2010 14:10

Early reports on the fate of the estate tax under the recently-announced compromise (yet to be enacted):  Restoration of the estate tax, with a $5 million per person exemption amount, and a rate of 35%.  Stay tuned for further developments. 

Michigan Supreme Court limits families' rights after autopsy

Suzy Fanning
November 09, 2010 00:13

Assuming that a decedent's brain has been removed by a medical examiner in order to conduct a lawful investigation into the decedent's cause of death, does the decedent's next-of-kin have a right under Michigan law to possess the brain in order to properly bury or cremate the same after the brain...