From case law approving an alternative pleading model for trust beneficiaries to avoid triggering a no-contest clause, to COVID-19 relief measures, we have  seen significant developments in estate planning and business law recently. To ensure that you stay abreast of these legal changes, we have highlighted a few noteworthy developments and analyzed how they may impact your estate planning and business law practice.

Legal developments we will cover:

• IRS Regulations Clarify Treatment of Excess Deductions Passed on to Beneficiaries
• New Interim Final Rule Authorizes PPP Loan Increases for Partnerships
• Virginia Supreme Court’s Ruling on No-Contest Clause Case
• Valuation Discount Disallowed for Lack of Control
• IRS Issues FAQs Regarding COVID-19 Relief for Estate and Gift
• Expenses Paid Using PPP Loan Proceeds Later Forgiven Not Deductible
• Congress Passes PPP and Health Care Enhancement Act
• Temporary Relief for Small Businesses Seeking Funding Through Crowdfunding

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), signed into law on March 27, 2020, is designed to provide quick and substantial relief to individuals and businesses affected by the economic shutdown in response to the spread of COVID-19. Several CARES Act provisions provide temporary tax relief for individuals and businesses, as well as enhanced tax incentives designed to encourage charitable giving. 

What is Trust Decanting?

For many years, practitioners have struggled to find ways to change the terms of an irrevocable trust. However, through common law and through the decanting statutes that have been enacted in many jurisdictions, it is now possible to modify an irrevocable trust. The rationale for allowing such a modification is that a trustee who has the power to distribute the trust property to or for the benefit of one or more beneficiaries should be able to make the distribution to them in trust and dictate the terms of that trust. Decanting is essentially a “do-over”.