Please Come to the Principal’s Office
Earlier this year, I was invited to participate in the Principal for a Day program run by the Worcester Educational Collaborative, an independent non-profit advocacy group that facilitates private partnerships with Worcester Public Schools to “enhance the quality of public education in Worcester and the quality of our common life.” I found the experience to…
Federal District Court Decision in Massachusetts Rules Distributions from a Special Needs Trust May Cause Ineligibility for Section 8 Housing Subsidy
In DeCambre vs. Brookline Housing Authority (D.Mass.No 14-13425-WGY, March 25, 2015); a federal district court ruled that a local housing authority properly counted payments and distributions from a first party special needs trust as income. Because the income from distributions from the trust, when added to Kimberly DeCambre’s SSI income, pushed her over the maximum…
Recent Ruling Underscores the Importanceof Damages Provisions in a Commercial Lease
A recent ruling by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) highlights the importance of negotiating appropriate damages provisions in commercial leases. Landlords should ensure that their leases contain a comprehensive liquidated damages provision allowing them to accelerate rent for the balance of the lease term in the event of a tenant default. Without one, the…
Crummey Powers
For 2013, an individual is currently able to gift up to $5,250,000 in his lifetime without the imposition of federal gift taxes. If no such gifts are made during lifetime, $5,250,000 may be left to beneficiaries upon death, free of federal estate taxes. (For 2013 Illinois imposes estate tax at $4 million). In addition, an…
The Role of a Guardian Ad Litemin Domestic Relations Cases
On occasion, disputes occur between divorcing parents concerning the care of their children. When they do, the court may appoint an attorney to serve as a Guardian Ad Litem. Unlike an attorney who advocates a client’s position, the Guardian Ad Litem is required to investigate the issues identified by the court, determine what is in…
To Register or Not to Register: How Registering a Trademark Can Protect Your Good Name
How comfortable are you with conducting business under your corporate name? How comfortable are you with the names that you have given to your products and services? If you are the principal shareholder of a corporation conducting business in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, you have presumably filed your corporate name with the Secretary of State’s…
Can Your Brother-in-Law Do It? Trustee Selection
The keystone to any well thought out estate plan for married individuals is reciprocal revocable trusts. They are sometimes called “credit shelter” trusts because one of their functions is to shelter each grantor’s unified credit (currently $1.5 million) from taxation in the estate of the second-to-die. They are sometimes called “A/B” trusts because they typically…
Self-Employment Taxes on Flow-Through Earnings: The S-Corporation vs. LLC or Limited Partnership
The tax law governing the imposition of self-employment taxes on the flow-through income of S-corporations and LLC’s/limited partnerships continues to evolve. Historically, net earnings from self-employment have included net income derived by an individual from his/her trade or business, an individual’s distributive share of a partnership’s trade or business net income, and guaranteed payments to…
Using Qualified Special Needs Trusts To Protect Assets When A Parent or Grandparent Enters A Nursing Home
The greatest fear that parents of special needs children have is what is going to happen to their child or grandchild with special needs when the parent or grandparent dies? Due to their concern, many parents or grandparents include a special needs trust into their estate plan that provides funds to provide for goods and…