This is another in a series of blogs on the basics of estate planning. Prior to the advent of “portability,” estate planning attorneys used a “credit shelter trust” as the gold standard to preserve the estate tax exclusion of the first spouse to die. Assets up to the exclusion were placed in the trust for the benefit of the surviving spouse and descendants. The assets in this credit shelter trust pass to designated beneficiaries free from estate tax upon the death of the surviving spouse. … [Read more...] about Basics of Estate Planning: Portability vs. Credit Shelter Trust
