Blog - "Altman Speaks"

Special Needs Trusts: The Importance of a Proper Trustee

All Trustees, guardians and fiduciaries are required to keep track of and report the money in their control. This duty is particularly important with respect to special needs trusts, when the dependent child or person relies on the appropriate delegation of funds to maintain a lifestyle. While the requirements to be a considered a competent […]

Important Law Changes for those with Offshore Financial Assets

U.S. citizens, resident aliens and certain nonresident aliens are required to report worldwide income from all sources including foreign accounts and pay taxes on income from those accounts at their individual rates. The Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program and Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures were developed to provide non-compliant taxpayers with options for complying voluntarily. Changes to […]

Coming Soon: Uniform Legislation re: Digital Assets

We have spoken on the subject of digital assets many times over the past several years. With no uniform legislation on what should become of a deceased person's online accounts like Facebook and Twitter, who, if anyone, should have access to those accounts and what level of access they should be granted? This week, the Uniform […]

Offices Closed in Honor of Independence Day

Happy 4th of July! Our offices are closed today and will reopen Monday morning. Please be safe and enjoy the holiday weekend! - The Altman Team

How to Protect Inherited IRAs After the Clark v. Rameker Decision

In a landmark, unanimous 9-0 decision handed down on June 12, 2014, the United States Supreme Court held that inherited IRAs are not “retirement funds” within the meaning of federal bankruptcy law. This means they are therefore available to satisfy creditors’ claims. (See Clark, et ux v. Rameker, 573 U.S. (2014)). The Court reached its conclusion based on […]

A Note to You, Gary...

Anyone who knows Gary well knows that he does not like drawing attention to the many professional honors he receives. That being said, as the people who have the privilege of working with him every day, we are especially proud of this one... Last week, Gary was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Financial Planning Association of […]

Coming Soon: Changes to the DC Estate Tax!

Yesterday, the DC Council voted to approve a sweeping tax cut bill which includes changes to the District’s estate tax. Currently, estates in the District with a taxable value greater than $1 million are subject to DC estate tax. If the bill is signed into law, the estate tax exemption amount will increase from $1 million to $2 […]

Supreme Court: Inherited IRAs Not Protected in Bankruptcy

When Heidi Heffron-Clark inherited an IRA from her mother in 2001, she was unaware that, upon filing for bankruptcy nine years later, the account could not be shielded from creditors. In an opinion that was unanimously agreed upon, Justice Sonya Sotomayor, announced the court's ruling that inherited IRAs can not be protected in cases of […]

The Unintended Consequences of Some Provisions

I have been writing in my blogs about the importance of the words that are written in estate planning documents and how these words have consequences. Many times attorneys just use the same words over and over again, without ever thinking about the meaning or the consequences in a partically case. Sometimes, attorneys use a […]

Gifting a Home: Is a Qualified Personal Residence Trust for You?

A "QPRT" or "Qualified Personal Residence Trust" is a legal sanctioned method of transferring a primary or vacation home to family members at a reduced gift and estate tax cost. In other words, by transferring a home to a QPRT and retaining the right to live in the home for a stated period of years, […]

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