Wealth Management, Finance & Investing Blog

While the large increase in the federal estate tax exemption has provided many with federal estate tax relief, New Yorkers must continue to plan for New York estate tax. For a quick review of the New York Estate Tax “Cliff” basics, see the “Understanding New York’s Estate Tax “Cliff” blog post. What is the current exemption from New York estate tax again? The current New York estate tax exemption amount is $6,940,000 in 2024 (up from $6,580,000 in 2023). Under current law, this number will rema

In 2014, dramatic changes were made to New York’s gift and estate tax law. For many clients, the subject of the New York estate tax “cliff” continues to remain a source of confusion. This is for good reason. The New York estate tax cliff is not easy to understand, nor is it easy to know how it may impact your particular situation. The answers below are intended to guide those who remain baffled by the New York estate tax cliff. Learn more about mitigating the New York estate tax cliff here. Doe

What is a Spousal Lifetime Access Trust (SLAT)? It is a trust that you (the grantor) set up for the benefit of your spouse and your descendants. You would make a gift to the SLAT, using some of your federal lifetime gift exemption (currently $13.61M in 2024) to shield that gift from gift tax. While you give up all your rights and control over the gifted assets, your spouse will have access to the gifted assets as beneficiary of the SLAT. When does it make sense to have a SLAT? You should consid

Section 1202 provides an exclusion from taxation to a qualified investor of up to $10 million of capital gain or 10 times the stockholder’s adjusted cost basis, whichever is greater, upon the sale of Qualified Small Business Stock (QSBS).

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 introduced a 20% tax deduction focused on pass-through businesses. While the deduction has been around for a few years now, many business owners are still wondering whether they will qualify and how to optimize the deduction. While everyone’s circumstances are different, and we encourage consultation with a tax advisor, the Act created an opening for several planning opportunities to potentially reduce tax bills for owners of such businesses. First, a little ba

The holidays provide a great opportunity for fraudsters to unleash their schemes, knowing that we are busy traveling, shopping, and spending time with friends and families, all the while using technology that gives them an opportunity to attack. Recently, we heard from a few clients who successfully thwarted attacks against their accounts, Charles Schwab in one case, American Express in the other. Each attack followed the same script: Imposters pose as bank, credit card, or custodian (e.g., Sc

Despite EVERYTHING that has gone wrong in the past 5 years – wars, pandemic, inflation, political unrest, bull markets, bear markets and corrections – the US stock market has managed annual gains of 14.9%/year and indeed is up 21.8% on the year in 2023. For our latest webinar, let’s consider WHY US stocks have done so well in recent years on the way to answering, “What can we expect for the next 5 years?”

You’ve done it! Three years of law school, a summer internship or two, several grueling months of bar exam prep, and then – hopefully – some much-needed R&R. All of this has led to you to your first BigLaw associate job, and you’ve got the starting salary – and, more than likely, the hefty student loans – to show for your efforts. The numbers vary, but statistics suggest that less than 10% of associates will eventually go on to make partner at their respective firms (in some cases, as few a

Chances are that if you’ve reached a point in your career where your employer has granted you Incentive Stock Options (ISOs) or Restricted Stock Units (RSUs), you’re doing great. Both ISOs and RSUs are reserved for highly valued members of a company, people that organizations really want to retain for a long time. So, first things first, nice work! Equity compensation can be tricky, and handling your grants properly depends on a range of factors. This includes the technical side — your existing

The recent introduction of the Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) policy has revolutionized the world of college sports. Now, student athletes have an unprecedented opportunity to earn from their personal brand while still in school. This policy is not without its controversy, with detractors arguing that marketing opportunities distract athletes from their education and sport, but that hasn’t slowed the pace of contracts offered to athletes. So, here are six things we recommend student athletes c

Technology has been exponentially growing since the 60s, doubling every one and a half to two years.[i] Each technological innovation expands the world of possibilities while concurrently increasing efficiency. As a recent example, Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools can learn to solve problems and answer complex questions within seconds – faster than any human could. While it is true that rapidly advancing technology like AI will continue to shape the future, the exact impact is yet to be seen.

As we approach the end of 2023, you should aim to maximize your opportunities to transfer wealth to your children or grandchildren, accomplish your charitable goals, and engage in smart income tax planning. With that in mind, here is a checklist of five action items to consider before year-end: 1. Make Annual Exclusion Gifts The IRS gives you a gift tax annual exclusion each year, and in 2023, the annual exclusion is $17,000 per donee. This means that you can gift up to $17,000 per donee withou