North Carolina Estate Planning Blog


A consumer-oriented blog on estate planning, probate, asset protection and tax, with a focus on North Carolina law.

Author: Gregory Herman-Giddens practices at TrustCounsel in Chapel Hill, N.C.

Blawg Related Categories: Tax Law • Trusts & Estates • States • North Carolina • Solo / Small Firm • Legal Information

Recent Posts from North Carolina Estate Planning Blog


  • Family of NC Man Wrongly Declared Dead Sues Medical Examiner

    Sounds like a nightmare, but it's true.  After an auto accident, Larry Green was put into a body bag and refrigerated.  The medical examiner dismissed paramedics' claims of signs of life from Green's "body."  He…

  • AMT Patch for 2010? Forget about it!

     And don't even think about estate tax repeal.  From Brian Dooley CPA, MBT's newsletter: Update: The AMT patch is gone as seventy-three tax breaks will get a twelve month life. House Ways and Means Committee…

  • Bank of America Liable for Failure to Honor Power of Attorney

    In a recent Florida case, Bank of America was held liable for refusing to honor a power of attorney: Copyright 2009 Stuart News Company All Rights Reserved The Stuart News/Port St. Lucie News (Stuart, Florida)…

  • Is Your Will a "Turkey"? 6 Ways to Tell

    Thanksgiving is less than a week away, but many people currently have turkeys of a different kind - poorly drafted Wills. If your Will is missing one or more of these features, it's time for…

  • One Year Estate Plan "Patch" Likely

    Another article from CQ Politics about the Democrats' plan for the estate tax in 2010.

  • Year End Gift Checks - make sure you do it right

    Many people are aware that they can give any number of other people up to $13,000 per year under the federal gift tax annual exclusion (IRC Section 2503(b)).  Staying under this number means that no…

  • The IRS Loves Retirement Accounts

    Planning for tax-qualified plans, which includes IRAs, 401(k)s and qualified retirement plans, requires a careful examination of the potential taxes that impact these assets. Unlike most other assets that receive a “basis step up” to…

  • Further Delay on Estate Tax "Reform"

    Coming as no surprise to me, anyway, an article on the website CQ Polictics, House LIkely to Delay Estate Tax Consideration, states that the House will likely postpone any movement on estate tax legislation until…

  • Tax Court: Gifts to your own Private Foundation are Deductible

    This courtesy of Professor Chris Hoyt of the University of Missouri (Kansas City) School of Law: The Tax Court rejected an argument made by the IRS that a donor should not be able to claim…

  • No Relief for the Wealthy - Tax Predictions for the Next Decade

    From the GiftLaw eNewsletter article New Decade Predictions: "The clear intention of Congress is to start addressing the deficit in 2011 by increasing taxes on upper-income taxpayers. The top brackets are proposed to be returned…