Presenters at the 2019 Heckerling Institute on Estate Planning highlighted the continuing ripple effect of the TCJA on planning, including the release of several regulations designed to implement TCJA provisions (including pass-through entity taxation and estate tax “claw back”), the allocation of the higher generation skipping transfer (GST) tax exemption to pre-TCJA transfers, and the application of tax deductions in non-grantor trust planning. Given the highly-mobile and extended nature of today’s families, state law developments also factored considerably into the discussions, particularly the potential for estates and trusts to face tax exposure from multiple states.
Heckerling presenters emphasized that flexibility in planning will remain key for families and advisors through the on-going roll-out of the TCJA and related guidance. Given the TCJA’s temporary nature, the possibility for future tax law changes depending on future election outcomes, and the many moving parts of planning for the “modern” family, successful plans will require active management and on-going monitoring of both federal and state tax and legal developments.