By Bernard A. Krooks, Esq., Littman Krooks LLP

Challenges may arise if a person decides to write their own will. Lawyers do much more than draft documents. Lawyers make sure that the documents are drafted accurately and reflect your wishes and estate planning objectives. After all, once you are deceased it is likely too late to fix any mistakes you made in drafting your own will. There is however, at least one very important tool, called a renunciation, which can be utilized in some instances after your death to make things right and help ensure that your estate planning intentions are carried out.

Under New York law, if you are supposed to receive property under a will, trust, or even property held jointly with someone else, you may have the right to renounce all or part of such interest in that property.  The renunciation must be in writing, signed and acknowledged by a notary public.  There are also some other legal requirements such as the need to file the renunciation with the appropriate court in a timely manner.  You also must state that you have not received any consideration for the renunciation from anyone who stands to benefit from your renunciation (the person who will get the property as a result of your renunciation).  When you renounce the right to receive property, the property is disposed of pursuant to the terms of the will, trust or otherwise as if you had predeceased the decedent.  Once made, a renunciation is irrevocable.

Renunciation is actually based on a very simple concept:  no one can force you to accept a gift or an inheritance.  You can just say no!  So, you might be asking yourself, why would I renounce property that I am entitled to receive?  Well, there may be several reasons, including tax considerations, creditor concerns, or to carry out the testator’s intentions.

Here’s how it works:  let’s say you are listed as a beneficiary under your uncle’s will and your children are listed as contingent beneficiaries in the event you predecease your uncle.  However, you are concerned that by inheriting property from your uncle you might be subjecting yourself to additional estate taxes when you pass away and want to leave the inherited property to your children.  The property could potentially be subject to estate taxes twice:  once when you inherit it from your uncle and once again when you leave it to your children.  To avoid this result, you would need to renounce the property when your uncle dies and it would then pass your children at that time.  Thus, there would be only one transfer potentially subject to estate taxes instead of two.  Of course, with the newly revised federal and New York State enhanced estate tax exemption amounts, this tax benefit of renunciation will benefit only those with more significant estates.  In addition, in order for the renunciation to be valid for tax purposes you must meet the appropriate requirements for a qualified disclaimer under the Internal Revenue Code.   Keep in mind that one of those requirements is that you cannot direct to whom the property will go.  Thus, it is critical that you understand what will happen to the property if you decide not to take it, before you finalize the disclaimer.  Often, lawyers will draft documents specifically stating that certain property, if disclaimed, will be held in trust or pass outright to others in order to carry out the wishes of the client and to save taxes.

Learn more about at littmankrooks.com,  elderlawnewyork.com  & specialneedsnewyork.com. Have questions about this article? Contact us.

Was this article of interest to you? If so, please LIKE our Facebook Page by clicking here.