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Archive: Estates and Trusts

What is Maryland’s “Inheritance Tax”?

2024

Middle aged couple reviewing documents with their attorney.

Maryland is one of the few states that charges “inheritance tax”. We’ll start with the good news before you read on—fortunately, most conveyances of property are exempt from inheritance tax. However, it is important to be aware of inheritance tax as you consider bequests from your will, trust, or transfers via beneficiary designation. What is...

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How Using Will Substitutes Can Streamline Post-Death Transfer of Assets

2024

Many clients come to an estate planning consultation with a belief that a Last Will and Testament is the tool that disposes of their assets after they have passed away. Assets that transfer to your heirs via a Will must go through the court-supervised process called “probate”. Probate takes – in its most streamlined form...

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CLIENT ALERT – Thousands of Marylanders Could Be Exposed to Greater Estate Tax Burden

2024

In legislation that we will be keeping a close eye on, Maryland officials have proposed significantly reducing the state estate tax exemption from $5 Million to $2 Million. This would expose thousands more Marylanders – and many Bulman Dunie clients – to estate tax. What Is Estate Tax? Put simply, estate tax is a tax...

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Considerations on Naming Children as Co-Agents

2024

“Can My Kids Be Co-Agents?” This is one of the more common questions we get asked when we work with families to complete their Advance Medical Directive and Financial Power of Attorney. When clients designate their initial Health Care Surrogate or Financial Agent, the instinctive choice is to designate a spouse. But what about a...

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How to Protect Your Loved One’s Inheritance in Trust While Minimizing Conflict

2024

A common tool used by many of our estate planning clients is the use of a trust to protect a loved one’s inheritance. Where a trust is established, the inheritance is retained in trust for the benefit of a designated beneficiary, rather than distributed to that beneficiary outright (under the beneficiary’s control). By taking this...

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5 Things Every Millennial Should Know About Estate Planning

2024

5 Things Every Millennial Should Know About Estate Planning

When most people in their 20s or 30s think about estate planning, they assume that is something that their parents or grandparents should be worrying about. “I don’t yet have significant savings, let alone an ‘estate’ to plan for” is the common refrain. However, estate planning is about so much more than the post-death disposition...

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Client Alert – 2024 Estate and Gift Tax Exemptions

2023

Client Alert - 2024 Estate and Gift Tax Exemptions

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 tax-free to someone other than your spouse upon your death,...

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