While our current digital, paperless world has made life more efficient for most, when someone dies, it can be difficult for the survivors to obtain the keys to unlock all of the digital information that is left behind. As a result, it is important to plan during life to make the process of administering one’s
Leopoldo D. Matarazzo
A Look at the Current Muddled State of the Federal Estate Tax
Posted in Estate Tax, Legislation
For the first time in almost 100 years, a federal estate tax does not exist. On January 1, the federal estate and generation skipping transfer taxes were eliminated, but only for one year. Click here to read about the current legislative uncertainty.
Divorce Automatically Revokes Ex-Spouse as Beneficiary of Life Insurance Policy
By Leopoldo D. Matarazzo on
Posted in Estate Planning
Earlier this month, the New Jersey Appellate Division, in Hadfield v. Lillo, held that a decedent’s ex-spouse was not entitled to the proceeds of a life insurance policy where the decedent, after obtaining a divorce, failed to change the beneficiary designation of a life insurance policy on his life. This case represents a fairly straightforward…