Adler & Adler Blog

The primary purpose of using an irrevocable life insurance trust is to exclude the life insurance policy proceeds from estate taxation in the estate of the insured and the insured’s spouse. This can be accomplished even though the surviving spouse derives certain benefits from the trust while living. (The trust must be irrevocable, since property…

One of the basic purposes of trusts is protection. It may be the protection of a spouse, child, parent or dependent that is desired. It may be the protection of a beneficiary against his or her own possible errors of judgment in the management of trust property. Trusts are also used as a device to…

New York State has an estate tax on the transfer of property at death. New York State does not have a gift tax. But, since April 1, 2014, gifts made by N.Y. residents, within three years of death are “clawed back” (that is, they are brought back into the New York taxable estate and subjected…

Mr. Rice formed a trust for the benefit of his children in his home state, New York, and appointed a New York resident as the trustee. Under the terms of the trust the trustee has “absolute discretion” to distribute the trust’s assets to the beneficiaries. In 1997, Rice’s daughter, Kaestner, moved to North Carolina. North…

A number of New York State legislators are sponsoring A 2694 / S 3947, Medical Aid in Dying Act. The bill would allow qualified, terminally-ill adult residents of New York to legally obtain a prescription from their physician for medications to end their life peacefully, in a dignified way, at the place and time of…