Is Your Estate Plan Still Serving You? A Personal Note to High-Net-Worth Families and Business Owners in 2025
At NM Law, we work with families who’ve built legacies—entrepreneurs, business owners, and high-net-worth individuals who know that wealth isn’t just about money. It’s about impact. It’s about continuity. And in 2025, it’s also about making smart moves before the tax landscape shifts dramatically.
If you haven’t reviewed your estate plan recently, now’s the time. Not because it’s on your to-do list—but because the rules are changing, and your current plan may no longer protect what you’ve spent a lifetime building.
The Estate Tax Clock Is Ticking
Right now, the federal estate tax exemption is at a historic high: $13.99 million per person or $27.98 million per married couple. But on January 1, 2026, that exemption is scheduled to drop by roughly half. If Congress doesn’t intervene, your estate could be exposed to millions in unnecessary taxes.
For business owners especially, this can be devastating. Imagine your family having to sell a portion of your company—your legacy—just to pay the IRS. We don’t say this to alarm you. We say it to prepare you.
California: No Estate Tax (Yet)—But Don’t Get Comfortable
While California doesn’t currently impose a state estate tax, there are ongoing discussions about wealth taxes at the state level. And as political winds shift, so can tax laws. High-net-worth families in the state should be watching Sacramento just as closely as Washington.
A Checklist for 2025: What You Should Be Doing Now
Whether your net worth is $10 million or $200 million, here are a few things we’re advising our clients to do today:
1. Reassess Your Current Estate Plan
Laws change. Your net worth has likely grown. Your children may have matured. If your plan hasn’t evolved with you, it’s not working for you.
2. Explore Lifetime Gifting and Trust Strategies
There is still time to take advantage of the high exemption by transferring wealth now—before 2026. This could include:
- Gifting ownership interest in your business to heirs through tax-efficient structures
- Funding Spousal Lifetime Access Trusts (SLATs) or Dynasty Trusts to lock in the exemption
- Gifting to irrevocable life insurance trusts to offset future estate tax liabilities
3. Protect Your Business with a Succession Plan
If you’re the face of your company, what happens if you’re no longer there? Now is the time to formalize buy-sell agreements, identify successors, and ensure your estate doesn’t stall your business operations.
4. Address Liquidity
Estate taxes are due nine months after death—in cash. Business equity, real estate, and private investments don’t pay taxes. Having a plan for liquidity (such as life insurance or a family trust structure) can prevent a fire sale of assets.
Our Commitment to You
We know you don’t have time for vague plans or generic advice. You need a trusted advisor who understands the nuances of complex assets, cross-generational dynamics, and multi-state or international holdings. At NM Law, our estate planning is built around you—your vision, your business, and your family’s future.
Let’s talk. Let’s review your plan. Let’s make sure the legacy you’ve built continues with clarity, confidence, and control.
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