21st Century Considerations for Estate Planning: Digital Assets
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Why do I need an estate plan? The answers can be as varied as the individuals who pose the question. Reasons often mentioned include preserving assets, protecting beneficiaries and reducing death taxes. Certainly, the purpose of the core document of any estate plan, the Last Will and Testament, is to provide the testator with a means to state to whom their property will be distributed following death. Historically, wills were used most often by men who had no biological descendants, to devise their land. In modern times, one of the primary reasons for having an estate plan was tax avoidance. Understandably, individuals seek legal means to reduce or avoid potential estate tax liability and trust and estate practitioners are able to oblige through carefully drafted estate planning documents. In light of recent state and federal tax law changes, death taxes are no longer the primary reason the majority of individuals seek to complete their estate plans, as only the wealthiest individuals’ estates are subject to estate tax. So, if not to escape taxation, why do people need an estate plan?
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Why do I need an estate plan? The answers can be as varied as the individuals who pose the question. Reasons often mentioned include preserving assets, protecting beneficiaries and reducing death taxes. Certainly, the purpose of the core document of any estate plan, the Last Will and Testament, is to provide the testator with a means to state to whom their property will be distributed following death. Historically, wills were used most often by men who had no biological descendants, to devise their land. In modern times, one of the primary reasons for having an estate plan was tax avoidance. Understandably, individuals seek legal means to reduce or avoid potential estate tax liability and trust and estate practitioners are able to oblige through carefully drafted estate planning documents. In light of recent state and federal tax law changes, death taxes are no longer the primary reason the majority of individuals seek to complete their estate plans, as only the wealthiest individuals’ estates are subject to estate tax. So, if not to escape taxation, why do people need an estate plan?
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free ALM Digital Reader.
Benefits of a Digital Membership:
- Free access to 3 articles* every 30 days
- Access to the entire ALM network of websites
- Unlimited access to the ALM suite of newsletters
- Build custom alerts on any search topic of your choosing
- Search by a wide range of topics
