Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly Article, “Estate tax application ruled unconstitutional,” features Joseph L. Bierwirth

Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly

Joseph L. Bierwirth

8/25/2016

The Department of Revenue unconstitutionally applied the Massachusetts estate tax to a state resident’s ownership interest in a Paris apartment, a Probate & Family Court judge has determined.

The apartment was technically owned by a “societe civile immobiliere,” or SCI — a creature of French law in which the owner transfers property to a newly created corporation in exchange for shares. The decedent had created the SCI to facilitate a more orderly disposition of the apartment upon her death.

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