Along with the estate of billionaire Bacon, numerous smaller fortunes could shrivel if a new, retroactive federal estate tax is enacted. Estates consisting mainly of illiquid or hard to value assets could be hit particularly hard. The estate of reclusive author J. D. Salinger, who died last January, is a case in point. See
Salinger's Estate: a Tax Quandary?
From Los Angeles this month, The Telegraph reports movie-makers see new hope for gaining
the film rights to "The Catcher in the Rye." Their theory: a retroactive estate tax might force Salinger's estate to sell the rights to raise cash.
Could it happen?
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1 comment:
Here's an estate planning riddle for you. Let's say that the estate tax applies, that the value of the movie rights to Catcher in the Rye are $10 million, but Salinger's will forbids the sale of the film rights? Are the rights valued at zero for estate tax purposes? What about the alternate valuation date? What if there is a contest over the will, and some beneficiaries try to force the sale, against the author's wishes?
What if they succeed with the argument that the film rights are worth zero, but then five years later change their minds and sell them after all?
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