Category: Client Alert
In February 2025, we gave an urgent update that Maryland appeared poised to significantly reduce its estate tax exemption from $5 million to $2 million. As discussed in the article, this move would impact thousands of Marylanders and many BDBF clients. However, as we stated,…
January 1, 2025—the original deadline that most small businesses had to file a Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) report with the U.S Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network—has come and gone. Ordinarily, missing a filing deadline with a government agency can lead to penalties and investigations. However,…
As we predicted in our December 2024 e-newsletter, Maryland indeed appears on the brink of significantly hiking the state estate tax imposed upon Maryland residents. Governor Wes Moore’s budget proposal, if passed by the Maryland legislature, would see thousands more Marylanders exposed to estate tax,…
We expect contrasting changes to federal and state estate and gift tax laws in 2025. With a new year and a Republican sweep of Congress and the White House, we expect the federal estate tax exemptions will stay the same or increase. But given the…
Last month, my wife and I signed our own trust. Just like nearly all of my clients who create trusts, my wife and retitled our home into our trust. In retitling our home into our trust, we signed a deed conveying title to the property…
We recently updated you on the evolution of Maryland law to expedite the finalization of divorces, including the gradual removal of the requirement for a one-year separation. And now the District of Columbia has decided to follow suit. Specifically, the D.C. Council has passed a…
With a new year comes updated exemptions for estate tax exclusion and gift tax for 2024. What is the “estate tax exemption” and where is it going in 2024? The estate tax exemption refers to the value (or sum) of non-charitable bequests that can pass…
There is a significant piece of new law on the books effective January 1, 2024 that will impact all business owners, including many Bulman Dunie estate planning clients. Anecdotally, from talking to our clients who will be impacted by this change, most are not aware…
It is often difficult for divorcing couples to decide how to divide their shared pets. In both Maryland and the District of Columbia, pets are viewed under the law as “property” – just another asset to be divided along with the wedding silver. Unlike other property,…
October 1 is when the majority of laws enacted by the Maryland legislature in the preceding session take effect. This year, a new law takes effect October 1 in an attempt to reduce serious personal injuries from automobile accidents. Previously, Maryland drivers only had to…
