IN Voices

Was Gandolfini an unwise guy?
Liz Skinner’s article about the late actor James Gandolfini’s estate and the potential tax bill that his heirs could face — up to $30 million between New York state and the federal government — touched a nerve with readers, many of whom commented about the importance of estate tax planning. Some suggested that there could be more to the story.
“Good for him. At age 51, he had a $70M estate. About $69M more than what I have. So his family will have to make due on the $40M. He also took care of the taxpayers. So sad he had to leave us so soon.”

— Paul Pendorf
“Two key statements in the article: he may have refused additional estate planning … Second, he may not have qualified for any life insurance based on past habits, weight, etc. This “potential for litigation’ headline is a little sensationalistic at best. Let’s see what the heirs do. Monday morning quarterbacking is disrespectful at this point.”

— CA Adviser
“Who are we to judge. Yes, on the surface (in hindsight), there are ways we would have done things differently. Let’s move on to other topics until we know the facts, at which time we can make a case study out of it.”

— Interested Investor
“Estate planning is essential in every estate. Such a high tax bill could have certainly been deferred and possibly trimmed down. But that being said, only 50% will do this type of estate planning, since living for now avoids planning for your ultimate demise.”

— Jaime A. Hinojosa
“Recently, someone on Staten Island left an estate of $40 million to “no one’… there was no will. People do what they want to do and listen to whom they want. Death, at any age, is a difficult thing to talk about. But getting $40 million is much better than getting $0.”

— CoachMaria
“Holy moly, Batman! No revocable trust, defined-benefits plan or estate plan of any kind? He must have thought he was invincible. Too bad for the heirs.”

— Kelly Lonergan
“He has been a wonderful profit center for the federal government but without any risk that any business owner assumes.”

— STEPHEN_CRAFFEN
“Some poor adviser is going to get the “badda bim, badda boom’ for that poor planning.”

— SAVERIO_PAGLIONI
“Ouch … He earned the money and paid taxes on it. Then the money is taxed again upon his death. The fed and states should be in a surplus rather than a deficit with that kind of a game.”

— Don
Go to investmentnews.com/gandolfini to read the story related to these comments.