2007 Articles

Adventures in dying: The journey of a Law Clerk By Cynthia K. Hagemeyer June 2007 I first became fascinated, or rather disgusted, with estate litigation when my grandmother’s estate became the subject of a heated will contest.

Another Health Care Power of Attorney: Mental Health Treatment Preference Declaration By Donna L. Moore June 2007 The Power of Attorney for Property, Power of Attorney for Health Care and Living Will are familiar Advanced Directives. The Mental Health Treatment Preference Declaration (“Declaration”) is another Advanced Directive designed to capture the mental health treatment preferences of a client.

The delayed QTIP: The Illinois Wait-n-See By Katarinna McBride December 2007 After several frustrating and failed attempts to combine efforts with the Attorney General to structure legislation, the ISBA Trusts & Estates Section Council is taking the initiative to propose legislation amending 35 ILCS 405/2 of the Illinois Compiled Statutes.

The departed and divorced By Katarinna McBride March 2007 Which is legally more complicated, death during a divorce or death after a divorce?

Estate tax update: Estate tax reform proposals By Gregg M. Simon October 2007 On March 21, 2007, while the Senate was considering the fiscal 2008 budget resolution (S. Con. Res. 21), Congress hinted that it just may take up estate tax reform.

Five new laws passed in Springfield: Trusts and Estates Section Council legislative update By Ray J. Koenig & Amy Jo Smith October 2007 During the 95th Session of the Illinois General Assembly, the Trusts and Estates Section Council monitored 20 pieces of proposed legislation impacting our area of practice.

Here we go ‘round the Rosen bush—An FLP roadmap By Richard A. Sugar March 2007 The Rosen case sets out one of the best roadmaps for how to avoid the failure of family limited partnerships as governed by Section 2036(a)(1).

Illinois land trusts: Five statutes that can compromise the anonymity of beneficiaries By Seth A. Kaplan June 2007 In Illinois, land trusts have long been a device in which estate planning and real estate lawyers can assist clients in managing and controlling real estate while the title of the real estate is in the hands of a trustee.

IRS still not charitably driven when clients steer IRAs to trusts By Michael Cyrs March 2007 The Internal Revenue Service is still a miser when it comes to trusts and individual retirement accounts. In a recent internal legal memorandum (Internal Legal Memorandum 200644020 “ILM”) the Internal Revenue Service (“Service”) concluded that a transfer of an individual retirement account (“IRA”) to charity to satisfy a legacy from a trust was taxable to the trust as income in respect of the decedent under Internal Revenue Code Section 691(a)(2).

ISBA Trusts & Estates Section Council minutes from the April 20, 2007 meeting in Peoria, Illinois June 2007 Mark Zumdahl, Chairman, called the meeting to order at 12:01 p.m.

Legislative Update: Section success and opportunity in the 95th Session By Ray J. Koenig, III June 2007 During the 95th session of the Illinois General Assembly, the Trusts and Estates Section Council monitored nineteen (19) pieces of proposed legislation impacting our area of practice.

A lesson in discretion: Leona Helmsley’s last will and testament By Katarinna McBride October 2007 Many clients regard the content of their wills to be a private matter. Unfortunately, state law often requires that wills be recorded, and therefore open to public inspection by the media, creditors, distant relatives—essentially anyone.

Major “Kiddie Tax” changes By Edward J. Fellin September 2007 The Small Business and Work Community Tax Act of 2007 extends the reach of “Kiddie Tax” that is imposed on the investment income of minor children.

MCLE credit and newsletter authors September 2007 According to Rule 795(d)(7) of the Supreme Court of Illinois’ Minimum Continuing Legal Education Rules, authors who write “law-related articles in responsible legal journals or other legal sources” can get MCLE credit.

Minutes By Ray J. Koenig, III & Amy Jo Smith December 2007 Mike Wiedel reported that the basic LawEd program on Estate Planning for Modest Estates will be held on October 26th at NIU in Rockford and on November 2nd at Eastland Suites in Bloomington.

Mooove over Illinois, Wisconsin Real Estate Sheds Probate Harness By Michael Cyrs March 2007 Wisconsin recently passed legislation permitting owners of real property to avoid probate simply by naming a beneficiary to inherit the real estate.

Proposed regulations limiting estate tax deductions for uncertain claims against decedents and other administration expenses under §2053 By Steve R. Akers September 2007 The IRS has issued proposed regulations dealing primarily with the deductibility of claims against a decedent’s estate that are uncertain in amount at the date of death.

Regulating the acronyms: GRAT, GRUT, QPRT, CRAT and CRUT By Gregg M. Simon October 2007 The IRS proposed rules for determining the extent to which a trust in which the grantor has retained the use of property or the right to an annuity, unitrust, or other income payment for life, for any period not ascertainable without reference to the Grantor’s death, or for a period that does not in fact end before the Grantor’s death, is includible in the Grantor’s gross estate under IRC §2036. Prop. Reg. §20.2036-1, Prop. Reg §20.2039-1.

Stranger than fiction: The Illinois Attorney General wants trustees to WHAT! By Mary Cascino June 2007 Under the Charitable Trust Act, 760 ILCS 55/1 et.al., the Attorney General requires an estate representative or a trustee of a trust to notify the Attorney General of charitable bequests in excess of $4,000. Failure to comply with the notice requirements could result in a fine ranging from $500 to $1,000 to be levied against the estate or trust.

What a difference a day makes: Estate of Frazier Jelke III By Katarinna McBride December 2007 In a case of first impression, and reversing the Tax Court, the Eleventh Circuit in Estate of Frazier Jelke III held that in determining the estate tax value of company stock, the company’s value is reduced by the entire built-in capital gain as of the date of death.