Estate Planning to Minimize Estate Taxes
Wills and trusts are legal tools that can be structured in such a way as to give you maximum control over your assets both during your life and after your death. Without a proper estate plan that includes a will and different types of trusts, as necessary, the state government will distribute your assets after your death, and your wishes — or the wishes of your family — will not be considered.
When properly constructed, wills and trusts also protect as many assets as possible from estate taxes (sometimes called "death taxes," or the "sponge tax" in Massachusetts).
Mooney McGinn LLP
Offices in Cambridge and Danvers, Massachusetts
Cambridge 617-245-8080 | Danvers 978-767-4221
E-Mail
At Mooney McGinn LLP, our primary goal on behalf of all our clients is to help them recognize and minimize the negative financial consequences of all legal transactions — including the creation of an estate plan.
Our law firm is run by attorneys who have advanced legal degrees in U.S. tax law, along with significant practical experience crafting estate plans on behalf of both middle-income and high-income individuals. We also create estate plans for businesses, which is sometimes known as succession planning.
A proper estate plan — including a will and trusts, as necessary — may save you and your heirs money on probate expenses and often on estate taxes, gift taxes and the generation-skipping (GST) tax.
The Primary Difference Between a Will and a Trust
A will controls the distribution of your assets after your death; it tells the probate court who should get what. A will does not give you control over how the assets are used. Trusts, on the other hand, can give you control over the use of your assets long after death. Various forms of trusts can be used for a wide range of purposes, including: managing assets to create income for a beneficiary, reducing estate taxes and protecting beneficiaries from creditors.
Contact Mooney McGinn LLP
Mooney McGinn LLP has two Massachusetts offices to serve our clients - in Danvers and in Cambridge. We offer an initial phone consultation to all new clients.
Call our attorneys in Cambridge at 617-245-8080, in Danvers at 978-767-4221, or contact us by e-mail via the Contact Us page.
