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Attorney applauds estate tax changes

The new tax law doubles the estate tax exemption to more than 11 million dollars for individuals and 22 million dollars for couples.

Omaha, Nebraska-based attorney Dave Dvorak, whose practice areas include farm and ranch estate planning, says it’s a very positive development.

“Because the focus so often, historically, was on avoidance of taxes, at the detriment of the non-tax planning objectives. Which, quite frankly, are the most important ones—dealing with the family dynamics and the succession of the farming operation,” Dvorak says.

The doubling of the estate tax exemption level expires at the end of 2025. So, unless a future Congress extends it, the estate tax would revert to the previous levels. The American Farm Bureau says it will lobby Congress to make the new levels permanent or possibly eliminate the estate tax altogether.

AUDIO: Dave Dvorak discusses importance of estate succession planning