Supercharged Credit Shelter Trust

Many married individuals adopt an estate plan designed to avoid estate tax on the death of the first spouse to die while taking maximum advantage of the so-called unified credit (also known as the applicable exclusion amount). The plan typically involves setting apart the amount sheltered by the uni­fied credit (the “credit shelter” amount) separately and providing that only the portion of the estate in excess of the credit shelter amount will pass in a manner that qualifies for the marital deduction.