In Estate of Shapiro, the Ninth Circuit held that an individual had a valid palimony claim under Nevada state law. However, the issue was whether the decedent's estate qualified for a deduction for that claim under federal estate tax law

The Buffett-Gates Giving Pledge, under which wealthy individuals promise to leave a majority of their assets to charity, is an admirable effort to encourage philanthropy. However, the Pledge requires us to confront the paradox that the federal estate tax charitable deduction is unlimited while...

Congress needs to reconsider whether Code section 2104(a) which subjects the ownership of domestic stock by nonresident aliens to estate tax merits retention. This analysis offers several reasons as to why policy makers should introduce legislation that either repeals this Code section or...

The upcoming one-year repeal of the federal estate tax creates an opportunity to reconsider the taxation of wealth transfers. This paper argues that federal wealth transfer taxes should be retained and potentially expanded. The estate tax contributes importantly to the progressivity of the tax...

Many have advocated the taxation of bequests and gifts as income in order to achieve substantial revenues from unearned wealth and address inequality. There are, though, many drawbacks to the idea of taxing inheritance as part of the beneficiary’s income. Even for those who claim the inclusion...

Many have advocated the taxation of bequests and gifts as income in order to achieve substantial revenues from unearned wealth and address inequality. There are, though, many drawbacks to the idea of taxing inheritance as part of the beneficiary's income. Even for those who claim the inclusion...

The desirability of inheritance and gift taxes depends on individuals' tax responsiveness. This paper demonstrates how strongly, and in what way, the German inheritance and gift tax influences taxpayer behavior. To that end, it combines administrative data with cross-bracket tax variation: a...

The desirability of inheritance and gift taxes depends on individuals’ tax responsiveness. This paper demonstrates how strongly, and in what way, the German inheritance and gift tax influences taxpayer behavior. To that end, it combines administrative data with cross-bracket tax variation: a...