COURSE PURPOSE

IRS Form 706, "United States Estate and Generation Skipping Transfer Tax Return ("Form 706") ("the 706"), is often compared to a puzzle. The preparer must gather all the pieces and be certain that they all fit into the proper place. Just one missing or misplaced piece can cost thousands of dollars in additional tax, interest, and penalties. For this reason, many attorneys shy away from preparing Form 706. However, for those who are versed in estate tax planning, preparation of the 706 can be viewed as reporting the excellent planning that they have done. Additionally, many estate planners offer to prepare an estate tax return as part of the services they offer. This outline will review the basics of how to approach the 706, where to include certain odd property, and common mistakes to avoid in order to reduce the chance of an audit.

COURSE HIGHLIGHTS

Letha McDowell will proceed page by page, line by line through Form 706, which will be included in your written materials. Throughout this seminar, she will point out where to list assets and expenses and which items should be included in the gross estate. You may be surprised by some of the answers.

Ms. McDowell will provide practical advice to make preparation easier for you, such as "Prepare a checklist of all the assets that the decedent owned on his or her date of death. This may seem obvious but it often helps when checking your form in order to be certain that you have not left out any property. Remember that there may be non-probate assets which need to be included on the 706. Jointly owned property is a common example."

This program is by no means all encompassing, but is designed to give you the basics and answer some of those questions that may arise if you do not prepare estate tax returns on a regular basis.

QUESTION-AND-ANSWER SESSION

At the end of the program, you can push a number on your touch-tone phone and be placed in a queue for questions. When it's your turn, you enter the conference call in a mode that allows your question to be heard by the speakers and the rest of the telephone audience. The speakers will then discuss the question with you.