Legal Updates & Commentary for Tax & Estate Planning
Ask anyone outside the United States what comes to mind when they think about an American New Year’s celebration, and the odds are pretty good they will mention the ball drop in New York City’s Times Square.
That’s all well and good, but let me ask you, does the Empire State have…
“Good fences make good neighbors,” or so Robert Frost’s neighbor from “beyond the hill” says to him when “on a day” they “meet to walk the line and set the wall between” them “once again.” The neighbor repeats this proverb in response both to Frost’s question regarding the purpose of the wall –…
The “holiday season” is once again upon us. A time to spend with family and friends, a time for gift-giving (and re-gifting), for songs and for story-telling, and a time for remembering those who cannot be with us, those whom we have lost,[i] and a time to help those to…
Over the years, the Democrats in Albany have regularly made noise about increasing the rates at which New York State taxes the income of its wealthier residents.
With the election of Governor Cuomo in 2010, and with the Party’s supermajority in the State Assembly since then,[i] two of the three components…
Just over three weeks to go, then 2020 will be behind you. But don’t drop your guard just yet. Three weeks is a long time – plenty of time, in fact, for one more punch to the gut, another kick in the teeth, etc.
Your business started off the year well…
It has been more than eight months since the enactment of the CARES Act,[i] yet here we are, with the end of 2020 in sight, and we are still debating whether taxpayers should be allowed to claim a deduction for business expenses that were properly paid using the proceeds of a loan under the…
How are you coping with social distancing? Are you working remotely? If so, has it been as “seamless” as you would have others believe? Have you snuck out to visit family or close friends, or have they asked you to stay away because they or a loved one suffer from a…
There’s a gray pall hanging over New York that has clouded the judgement of many politicians, and has left many of its residents feeling anxious and off-balance. No, it’s not the smoke from all the newly lit joints, blunts and pipes drifting across from New Jersey, following the recent approval by that…
I was reviewing a reorganization plan Saturday morning – coffee and chocolate chip cookies within easy reach[i] – when an email crossed my screen with the subject line that each of NBC, CNN, ABC and the Associated Press[ii] had just “called” the presidential election for Mr. Biden.[iii]
Fine, I…
Science has not established – at least to my knowledge – any correlation between the pre-election year-end activities of individual business owners, on the one hand, and election outcomes, on the other.[i]
If the behavior of business owners were considered an accurate indicator of election results, then one may reasonably…
