Estate Planning Questions and Answers Excerpts from questions sent to Layne Rushforth.

DISCLAIMER: The answers given are provided free of charge as general information only and do not constitute legal, financial, or investment advice. Laws vary from state to state, and many laws have exceptions that may apply to each situation. The facts, circumstances, and the provisions of pertinent legal documents make each situation unique.

WARNING: Before acting (or not acting) be sure to consult with the appropriate attorney (as to legal matters), certified public accountant (as to tax returns and tax matters), and/or an investment advisor (as to investments) who is licensed in the state whose laws apply to the situation, who has experience in the field, and who has an adequate opportunity to review the pertinent facts, documents, and laws related to your situation.

Question List

Categories

1. Questions about estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer taxes:
   1. Can a "pure trust" or "business trust" eliminate income and estate taxes?
      
   2. What is an "ABC Trust"?
      
   3. What is a "QTIP Trust"?
      
   4. Can the GST exemption be allocated to a trust for unborn grandchildren?
      
   5. Are political parties "nonprofit organizations" for estate planning. purposes?
      
   6. Is charitable giving the best way to reduce our taxable estate?
      
   7. Are investments the key to reducing the estate tax?
      
   8. What is the best way for my uncle to reduce his estate for estate tax purposes?
      
   9. Can I pay my children's debts and taxes without making a taxable gift?
      
   10. Does the recipient of a $10,000 gift have to pay any taxes?
       
   11. Can a terminally ill person save estate taxes by making death-bed annual-exclusion gifts?
       
   12. Should a bypass trust in an A/B Trust be the beneficiary of an IRA?
       

2. Questions about estates, trusts, wills, and probate:
   1. What should one pay for a revocable trust?
      
   2. Can my parents remove my sister from an irrevocable trust?
      
   3. Where should I keep my original will?
      
   4. Can an Executor take anything he or she wants?
      
   5. What is the best way to distribute my estate at death?
      
   6. Should I contest my mother's trust?
      
   7. Can I contest the will of a "significant other" whom I lived with but did not marry?
      
   8. If a parent makes unequal lifetime gifts, can the children agree to equalize things later?
      
   9. What is a "Qualified Subchapter S Trust and why is it mentioned in my revocable trust?
      
   10. What should be in a will or trust for a child or parent with special needs?
       

3. Questions about property ownership:
   1. Does joint tenancy work?
      
   2. How does my mother add my wife and me to the title to some land she owns?
      
   3. Do I have the right of access to property I inherited?
      
   4. What can I do to make Father share Mother's belongings?
      

4. Questions about income taxes:
   1. What is the best way to leave my IRA to my spouse and children?
      
   2. How is trust income taxed? To the settlor or to the beneficiaries?
      
   3. Can I give stock obtained through an incentive stock option to a charitable remainder trust?
      

5. Miscellaneous Questions:
   1. How do I pick an estate planning attorney?
      
   2. Are post-nuptial property agreements enforceable?
      
   3. As a custodian under the Uniform Transfers to Minor Act, can I pay taxes and pay medical bills?
      

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