Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Texas

My father passed away and left a retirement account in my sisters name only to divide among the remaining sisters there is no will. does she pay the taxes when she takes it out or are we givin our share and we pay taxes? It is alittle over 40,000


Asked on 8/03/10, 7:14 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys

Keith Engelke Law Office of S. Keith Engelke

You left me behind at "retirement account in my sisters name." It is not clear from you question so I am going to assume that all your sisters were designated as beneficiaries to your dad's IRA.

Here is a link to an article on IRA's that may be helpful:

http://www.fairmark.com/rothira/inherit.htm

I assume you are asking about income taxes. If your dad would have been taxed on the money if he were to withdraw it, as with a regular IRA where your dad deducted the contributions from his taxable income, so would the person designated as a beneficiary in the IRA. On the other hand, if it was a Roth IRA, the beneficiaries would not have to pay income tax.

There are some additional options that may be available to continue the tax deferred status of the IRA and defer payment of taxes. You should consult a financial professional about those options. There are also some time limits on when these decisions can be made.

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Answered on 8/08/10, 11:12 pm
Cheryl Rivera Smith The Smith Law Firm

If you roll over the IRA, taxes will not be due...yet. Check with the instution where the account is located and they should be glad to discuss your options.

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Answered on 8/09/10, 5:30 pm


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